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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29296023">The Desert Oath</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinkpoppunk/pseuds/pinkpoppunk'>pinkpoppunk</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>One Direction (Band), Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Star Wars Setting, Crack Treated Seriously, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Friends to Lovers, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Jedi as Found Family (Star Wars), M/M, Multi, Multiple Pairings, POV Multiple, Pre-Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Star Wars AU, and louis is a common kid.... or is he?, harry is a bounty hunter, its star wars baby!, larry au, liam wants to be a rebel, niall is a pilot, they all flirt with each other tho, this is set between episode 6 and 7, zayn is a smuggler, ziall au</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 06:42:52</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>29,139</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29296023</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinkpoppunk/pseuds/pinkpoppunk</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Niall is a pilot without a ship, Zayn is a smuggler carrying a vital item, Liam is a kid who wants to join the Resistance at all cost and Harry is a bounty hunter looking for Louis, a boy with a quick temper and powers hidden beneath.<br/>Or: a star wars au.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan/Zayn Malik, but in reality they all kinda flirt with each other so, but this are the endgames</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. the desert oath</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I can't believe i'm posting this! I've been working on this project since november of 2020 and it's my longest fic to the date!<br/>Here's a quick recap: if you don't know much about star wars you can still enjoy this piece of fanfiction as a fun story about ot5's aventures in space, however, if you're into star wars you're gonna love this, hopefully. i tried my best to fit the story in the actual canon of the movies lol this fic is set a little bit earlier than episode 7 and it tries to answer a few questions that the new trilogy opened and never adressed again. well, the answers are here, and it's one direction baby. <br/>a masive masive thanks to my beta and my writer's with benefits, <a href="https://quelsentiment.tumblr.com/">Emmanuelle!</a> both have been working together on our secret projects and helping each other, and without her i wouldn't have been able to pull this off. <br/>Another shout out to my first beta <a href="https://lairport.tumblr.com/">Kez</a>, who sadly couldn't continue helping me, but they've been one of the very first people who was so excited about this fic. Hope you enjoy it love &lt;3<br/>my tumblr is <a href="https://thechampagnelovers.tumblr.com/">@thechampagnelovers</a>, leave a comment or send me an ask there! i will love to hear everyone's thoughts!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>1: the pilot</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Niall snorted, wiping the oil out of his hands. If he didn’t fix the fuel leak, his ship wouldn't make it past the day. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Exhausted, Niall grabbed his blaster and took off to the Mos Eisley Cantina. He just needed a drink and a miracle. Hopefully, he would find some idiot who would pay him enough to cover all his expenses. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was welcomed in the dirty cantina with open arms of all races. The place was always crowded with thieves, smugglers, and criminals from all across the galaxy. His people. He was sure he could find a solution to his problem right here, or at least he could take a break from working on The Thunderbolt. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Same as always, Wuher!” Niall exclaimed, sitting down in the bar.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Comin’ up,” the bartender smiled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Got me any jobs?” the pilot enquired, taking a look around the place. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nothing, Niall, it’s not a busy day today,” Wuher apologized as he handed him a glass of fireball whiskey.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t believe that,” Niall smirked. Even though the place wasn’t particularly empty (he had never seen the Mos Eisley Cantina completely empty), it was a calm weekday with not that many people, and Niall didn’t recognize any of them, except for the staff members and three people sitting at two different tables at the back. Harry was one of them, clearly asleep on his chair. The other one, however...</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Who is that, with Zayn?” Niall asked the bartender, nodding in their direction.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wuher only took a glance at them before going back to his work.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A kid. He says he wants to join the Resistance.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A farmer kid from Tatooine wanted to run away from the desert, nothing Niall hadn't seen before. The thing was, he definitely didn’t have any money. “And what is Z doing with him?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If you’re jealous, go check it out yourself!” Wuher barked at Niall.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not jea–” Niall began making excuses, but Wuher was already busy with other customers.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Taking his glass, Niall approached their table, where he heard them talking.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you even know how to get to the Resistance?” Zayn snorted, sounding very tired. Niall was surprised that someone with such little patience as Zayn was taking his sweet time to talk to this boy.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It can't be hard?” the guy shrugged.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn shook his head. “You’re an idiot, kid.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t call me kid, you’re literally my age! And I’m taller than and bigger than you.” The boy told him as he stood up, threatening.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn didn't even flinch. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And I have a blaster,” he said as he took it out, unamused, “so I’ll call you whatever I want.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall smirked and approached the table from where he’d been listening in. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Zayn, don’t be rude to the kid.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn took a look at Niall and smiled. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, look who it is. Did you fix the–”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m Niall Horan,” he interrupted Zayn as he sat down next to him. “I see you met my pal Zayn. Who might you be?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m Liam Payne,” the boy told him, sitting down again. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can take you to the Resistance, Liam Payne,” Niall said, taking a swig of his drink.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Really?” Liam exclaimed excitedly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But,” Niall went on as though Liam hadn’t said a word, “you have to pay.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam’s smile was gone as quickly as it had appeared. “Oh.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, </span>
  <em>
    <span>oh,</span>
  </em>
  <span>” Zayn mocked him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t have money,” Liam murmured.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course you don’t,” Niall repeated as he rolled his eyes. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll do anything, I can work for you guys,” Liam begged, his tone turning desperate, matched by a heartbreaking expression.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall and Zayn caught each other’s gazes across the table, before helplessly bursting into laughter. Niall wasn’t sure what was funnier: Liam’s naivety or his annoyed face at their reactions. Whenever Niall tried to stop laughing, a glance at Liam’s frown, which deepened with each passing moment, was enough to set him off again.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As he wiped his tears away, a deep voice interrupted their laughter. “You can help me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Harry?” Zayn asked, clearly confused. Niall looked up and saw the bounty hunter, now fully awake, standing next to Liam at their table.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why do you need him?” Niall nodded to Liam.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m looking for a farmer boy, looks around his age,” he only explained, deliberately cryptic about it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And who are you?” Liam questioned, in a near fruitless attempt to not look so nervous.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s a </span>
  <span>bounty hunter,” Zayn answered, sounding bored of Harry’s antics, as usual.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You can pay Niall the money for the ride once you help me,” Harry offered, to which Niall could only shake his head and spit a dry laugh.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It won't be enough, Styles,” Niall informed the bounty hunter, “no matter how much of your share you pay him, it won’t be enough to take him anywhere.” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Or to fix the fuel leak</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he added to himself.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I guarantee you, it’s gonna be more than enough, pilot,”  Harry told him as he reached for his pocket. “I’m looking for this boy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He threw a tracking device on the table. The screen showed the picture of a kid around their age. He had sharp cheekbones—a product of malnutrition, Niall knew—with brown hair styled messily across his forehead, and piercing blue eyes. Nothing remarkable, nothing out of the ordinary, on the outside, at least. Niall read his name: Louis Tomlinson. Not even his name was special.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What about him?” he asked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don't ask questions, that's one of the rules of bounty hunting,” Harry reminded him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Before he could call Harry out on assuming he knew the damn rules of bounty hunting all that well, Niall noticed how Zayn was staring at Liam, and directed his attention to him. The boy had suddenly gone from looking eager to nervous, his face pale. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall leaned on the table, getting closer to Liam’s face. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You know him, don't ya?” he whispered. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In a quick move, Liam pushed Harry out of the way, but Niall was faster than him and caught his arm before he could take a step. However, Liam was very strong. It took Zayn and Harry’s grip alongside his own to pin him back down again. Between the three of them, they managed to corner Liam in a wall, away from the booth.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Damn he’s strong,” Niall murmured, catching his breath from the brief scuffle.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You went on and on about joining the Resistance, and here’s your chance, Payne. Why are you running?” Zayn mocked the boy, but he was also agitated, Niall could hear it. He felt the same.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Louis is my friend,” Liam spat as he tried to free himself from the pilot, the smuggler and the bounty hunter. No one in the cantina blinked an eye or raised from their tables to help the boy. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, so you </span>
  <em>
    <span>know</span>
  </em>
  <span> him, then?” Harry smirked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam, still wrestling with their combined grips on his arms and refusing to still, stared deep into Harry’s eyes, challenging.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you want from him?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Me? Nothing,” Harry replied, rather surprised by the accusation, like Liam had never heard of how bounty hunting worked before. “It’s not personal, just work.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I won't do it,” Liam told him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Then there’s no ship,” Niall quickly jumped in to say. He couldn't let the money slip away just like that, regardless of the fact wasn’t particularly fond of the situation (the situation being: extorting poor farm boys). </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry met Liam’s gaze, smirking triumphantly. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“See, the thing is, Liam,” he began saying, leaning forward to close the distance between them, “now you have to tell me where he is anyway.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The dim-light cantina was suddenly filled with bright light from the outside as the door opened, and the cohort of four all turned their heads to their left at the same time. Niall blinked twice, the first time to adjust to the light, and the second one just out of disbelief. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis Tomlinson had walked into the cantina.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Never mind!” Harry smiled like a kid in a candy store, or like a bounty hunter who just found his target. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn rolled his eyes at the turn of events, still holding Liam, even though he’d stopped moving, going lax in their hold. “Remind me to become a bounty hunter and not a smuggler next time,” he whispered to Niall in an annoyed tone.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Louis saw them all scrambled against the wall, he cried, “Liam, you dickhead!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Louis– ” Liam tried to talk but was interrupted by Harry stepping away from them and in Louis’ direction.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you Louis Tomlinson?” he questioned, unable to hide his cheshire-cat smile.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Who are you?” Louis asked, clearly confused by the change of pace. None of the Tatooine boys seemed scared of them, Niall had to give them that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A friend of Liam’s. Take a seat, please,” Harry lied, and gestured to the table as he grabbed Liam by the neck and walked back to their seats. Niall exchanged a dubious look with Zayn before following him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Wuher! Drinks on me!” Harry shouted to the bartender.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Comin’ up,” Wuher smiled and disappeared behind the bar.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They all sat down on the benches once more, Louis grabbing a chair from one of the empty tables. The cantina went on with its normal business and loud music, and a waitress handed them five glasses of </span>
  <span>whiskey.</span>
  <span> Niall took his in one shot, but the rest didn’t move to grab theirs. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Your friend here needs a ship to get him to the Resistance,” Harry began explaining to Louis after a moment of silence amongst the group.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The look Louis shot Liam could kill.  “You’re an idiot, do you know that?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I like this guy,” Zayn mumbled to Niall under his breath.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And I offered him some work to pay for it,” Harry went on, ignoring the comments as if nobody had spoken.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Now the murderous stare was on Harry instead of Liam. “What kind of work?” Louis demanded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, you see,” Harry settled back into his chair, “I was looking for you.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And with a single sentence, Louis’ defensive attitude was gone. “Me?” he asked in disbelief. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yep! And now that you’re here, our work is done, </span>
  <em>
    <span>so</span>
  </em>
  <span> everyone wins,” Harry smiled as he patted Liam on the back, like he hadn’t had him up against the wall a few moments ago. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis shook his head. “Why are </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> looking for </span>
  <em>
    <span>me</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry let out a groan. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>I</span>
  </em>
  <span> am not looking for you, personally. I am carrying out a job.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, you don’t look like his type,” Niall teased.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m a bounty hunter, it’s just work, kid,” Harry repeated, ignoring the pilot.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When he heard that, Louis couldn't contain a snort. “Aren’t you too young to be a bounty hunter?” he spat in a sassy tone, clearly making fun of Harry. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall thought Harry would’ve blasted Louis’ brains out in that moment just for saying that, but the kid was probably worth a fucking ton of money, because Harry simply took out his blaster very calmly and, instead of pointing it at Louis, he pushed it down on Liam’s temple, all with a smile on his face. “If you don't come with me, the rebels will lose one of their soon-to-be own. And I thought the guy had a very bright future.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>What happened next went too fast in front of Niall’s eyes for him to even react.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis snatched Niall’s blaster out of his belt in a swift move, and pointed it at Harry as both stood up. Next to him, Zayn also stood up and pointed his blaster at Louis. Liam and Niall were the only ones sitting down and weapon-less in the middle of the shooting. Niall blinked. </span>
  <em>
    <span>What the fuck?</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Let him go,” Louis demanded. He had a steady hand, but Niall could see from across the table the nervous twitch in his thigh. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you even know how to shoot a blaster, mate?” Harry yelled, starting to lose his calm. The situation was getting out of control. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t know, but we can find out.” Louis smirked, gaining more confidence seeing Harry so frazzled. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Louis pulled the trigger, the rest of the Cantina stood up and pointed their blasters in their direction. The shot missed Harry, skidding past his hair in a flash of light.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, how's your Thursday been?” Niall smiled sarcastically to Liam, whose face was as pale as the moons of Tatooine. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Drop the blaster, mate,” Zayn tried to talk some sense into Louis. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Leave Liam alone,” Louis demanded in response. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You have to come with me.” Harry insisted again.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t do it, Louis,” Liam managed to say. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wuher, why do you let kids in here?” Niall shouted to the bartender as he shook his head, gesturing to the commotion around them. “Look at this mess!”.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>With each passing second, Harry was slowly turning redder in frustration. “Tomlinson, here’s how it’s gonna go,” he began saying as he pushed the gun into Liam’s temple harder. The gesture was sure to leave a mark behind. “You drop the blaster and come with me, and both you and your friend get out of this cantina unharmed.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What's the other option?” Louis enquired defiantly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don't know, what do you prefer? Having two legs and one arm, or two arms and one leg?” Harry asked. It was clear that he was running out of patience. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And when Niall thought the situation couldn’t get worse, someone in the cantina ruined the charged moment. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Stormtroopers!” the voice cried, and chaos broke.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Shit</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” Harry and Zayn cursed in unison. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall noticed how Louis was briefly distracted by the sudden mayhem that emerged in the cantina as everyone who needed to run began to run, making a break for the available exits before they could be blocked off by the soldiers in white. He snatched his blaster back from Louis’ hands in a quick move.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The stampede of patrons was already blocking the doors, there was no way to escape fast. Niall was trapped. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hide, now, both of you,” Harry demanded, pushing Liam and Louis down under the table, getting them out of sight right in time, just as a group of six stormtroopers crowded into the </span>
  <span>cantina. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall stood up next to Harry, and Zayn followed him. The smuggler looked around, before whispering to Niall, with a desperate tone in his hushed voice. “They’re looking for me. Can you get me out? Fast?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall’s gaze followed the troopers movements, watching them move around the bar, shoving the leftover patrons. Hewaited until they got distracted before whispering back his reply. “The Thunderbolt needs urgent work, but I can probably manage a quick getaway out of Tatooine. Maybe. If we’re careful not to get fuckin’ shot, first.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They’re not looking for you, smuggler, they’re looking for him,” Harry interrupted with a hiss, and nodded to the two hidden under the table.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The First Order is looking for </span>
  <em>
    <span>him</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Zayn questioned, brows shooting skyward. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why do you think I'm here? They paid me to rescue the boy,” the bounty hunter carried on explaining in whispers. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, you could have explained tha–“ Niall began, but got no further, interrupted by a trooper, blaster raised towards the booth they were all still crowded into.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You three, shut up!” they spat. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The three went quiet while the stormtroopers walked around the tables on the other side of the cantina, dragging away the few felons who didn’t manage to make an escape, taking all of their possessions. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where’s the ship, Niall?” Zayn begged under his breath after a moment. When Niall looked down, he caught a glimpse of blue eyes staring back at him from down under the table. The pilot only sighed, knowing they were all relying  on him and The Thunderbolt now. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“At the workshop,” Niall tried to murmur his words loud enough, pitching his voice so the whole group could hear him but not the troopers. He knew they had to act fast, so he didn’t waste any time. Niall made eye contact with the bartender and scratched his nose quickly, before any stormtrooper could see it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was a practiced move. Niall had been in tussles in this cantina more times than he could count. It came with the territory. As soon as Wuher noticed his gesture, he quickly distracted the troopers by spilling </span>
  <span>fireball whiskey</span>
  <span> all over them, playing the clumsy bartender and waving his hands apologetically. It diverted their attention enough for their group to make a break for it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Go, go, </span>
  <em>
    <span>go!</span>
  </em>
  <span>” Niall cried as he bolted towards the doors, followed by Harry, Louis, Zayn and Liam. The dripping stormtroopers caught onto them escaping and gave chase. The streets were crowded and busy that day, but Niall was lean and quick, and he managed to avoid the obstacles. None of them had taken out their blaster (Liam and Louis didn’t even have one), but the stormtroopers didn’t care that there were innocent people and children in the streets, and were firing at the group as they escaped.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As he dodged around people, Niall only made eye contact with Zayn and Harry and nodded to his right. Niall knew the streets of Tatooine like the back of his hand, and so did Harry and Zayn. The smuggler and the bounty hunter ran away in different directions, disappearing behind the colourful tents of Tatooine’s street market, making the troopers divide as well. Liam and Louis, however, kept running behind Niall, followed by two stormtroopers. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where are we going?” Louis asked as Niall took the blaster from his belt and shot behind himself at the troopers.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“To my ship, hurry up!” he managed to yell before shooting down one of the troopers, leaving only one left following them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The stormtrooper kept blasting at them furiously, not caring about potential collateral victims. Niall tried to shoot back, but he also had to keep an eye on the road to avoid bumping into something.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We need a distraction,” Niall cried to Liam and Louis. They were getting closer to the workshop, but they couldn’t walk straight into it with the stormtroopers following behind. Niall looked up to the crowded street, trying to find an idea.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He kept running as fast as he could, trying his best to blast the trooper down, dodge the people in the streets and keep an eye on Liam and Louis in the process. He quickly glanced to the side, where he saw the entrance to the workshop, but the short distraction was enough to make him trip and fall down to the dusty ground. He landed on his butt, so he had a perfect view of the stormtrooper coming towards him, and of the way the street market tent’s shook violently before collapsing on top of the trooper. When Niall turned around, he noticed Louis standing on the tents with a confused expression, while Liam was extending Niall his hand. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“When a man falls, you leave them behind.” Niall reprimanded the two boys for stopping the moment he fell, but didn’t waste too much time on the street, worried that the stormtrooper would manage to break free. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He didn’t waste time when he walked into the workshop. He went down to the engine, disconnected all the cables and closed the lid, getting it ready to fly away, somehow. As he was about to walk into the ship and get it started, he noticed the two boys standing in the middle of the workshop, admiring the old and ragged Thunderbolt like it was the most marvellous ship in the galaxy. If it wasn’t for the fact that they were being chased by stormtroopers, Niall would’ve been flattered. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What are you doing? Come on, hop in!” he cried to the boys, ushering them toward the ship. In that moment, Zayn and Harry came into the workshop through two secret entrances. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Go to the shooters,” Niall instructed Zayn and Harry as they walked in. On board the ship, he was the one in charge, and he loved it. “You two... hold on to something,” he sighed at Liam and Louis. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was crammed in the spaceship’s cockpit between Liam, Louis and him. Niall wanted to reassure himself that this wasn’t the craziest thing he’d done, that it wasn’t his first time running away from troopers, but back then The Thunderbolt was in an almost perfect shape. Or at least, it wasn’t as damaged as it was now. NIall could only pray it would make it out of Tatooine. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The ship took off with a shudder, like it was reluctant to hit the skies, but soon it was flying above Mos Eisley and soaring, speeding away to the desert. Of course, it didn’t take long until the stormtroopers followed in their speeder bikes. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Niall, this shooter doesn't work,” Harry cried over the comms, as The Thunderbolt staggered in the air, shot by the troopers. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If we get caught, I’m gonna kill you myself, Harry!” Niall shouted down to him as he avoided crashing with the rocks, trying his best to dodge the speeders and lose them. Whatever Harry shouted back, Niall couldn't hear it because of Zayn’s laughs, who was too busy trying to take down the troopers by himself with the only blaster that worked to engage in the conversation.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The Thuderbolt’s fuel panel indicated the little it had was leaking away, and quickly. If they wanted to get away from Tatooine, Niall had to hyperspace jump </span>
  <em>
    <span>now</span>
  </em>
  <span>, still almost on the ground. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fuck it, here goes nothing,” Niall sighed, and activated the hyperspace jump. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The Thunderbolt shook violently, more violently than Niall had ever seen  before, throwing everything and everyone inside the ship, making them fly around everywhere. Before Niall could realize something was wrong, the ship was falling. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And that was the last thing he remembered. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>2: the bounty hunter </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Fuck, fuck, fuck, I’m gonna kill you Harry,” was the first thing Harry heard when he woke up. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A thunder breaking though the sky was the second thing.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Nice.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry’s body ached everywhere, especially his ribcage, on which he had landed when The Thunderbolt had crashed. As he stood up from the ground, he checked if there was any serious damage to his body, and took a look around to see where they had landed (or rather, fallen). Next to him were the remains of Niall’s ship, almost unrecognizable. Niall had tried his best to land as smoothly as he could, but Harry could recall better flights than this one. There were pieces of The Thunderbolt scattered around everywhere. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They had landed on a rainforest-like planet, where a tropical storm was approaching. It was a stark contrast to Tatooine’s dry desert and harsh sun. Harry could hear the rest of the boys talking somewhere in the jungle, but he couldn't see any of them. “Where are you?” he called.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Over here!” he heard the smuggler call him from the other side of the ship. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is everyone alright?” Harry asked as he walked around the remains of the ship to find them.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If wrists are meant to bend like this, then yes,” Louis answered behind him. Harry turned around and saw him sitting a few meters away from the ship (most probably where he had landed), holding his left wrist with his right hand like it was made of jello.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Louis!” Harry heard Liam call his friend when he spotted him, running past Harry to help him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry walked towards the two boys, scratching his head. “Fuck, I need the kid whole, are you alright?” he asked, worried.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis gave him a dirty look. “You threatened to chop one of me limbs and now you care if I’m okay?” he enquired, clearly offended.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry only rolled his eyes. “Well, it was a threat, obviously.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As Harry kneeled down next to Louis and Liam, he could hear Zayn and Niall screaming at each other a few steps away from them, their shouts mixing with the sound of the thunder approaching them fastly. Something worse than being on a shipwreck, was being on a shipwreck with the most insufferable couple.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can you move?” Harry asked Louis, directing his attention back to him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam, kneeling down next to his friend, tried to make him stand up, but Louis only managed to whisper “Fuck” before almost collapsing to the ground. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry took one more look around the forest, before checking his location on his tracking device. “According to the locator, we are in </span>
  <span>D'Qar,” he informed the Tatooine boys.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“D'Qar?” Louis repeated, sounding more worried than confused as to where the fuck D’Qar was.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is there anything in this place?” Liam wondered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You are the one who whinged about joining the Resistance, here’s their base,” Harry informed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam’s eyes grew bigger all of the sudden, forgetting about his friend or the ship “It’s here? Do they know we are here?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I doubt it,” Harry shook his head. “The Thunderbolt is ancient, we probably flew by their radars”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But are you sure the rebels are here?” Liam asked, as desperately as a kid waiting for a present. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s what they say,” Harry only told him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait, Liam, how </span>
  <span>are we gonna get back to Tatooine?” Louis interrupted, taking a look at his friend, who clearly wasn't really thrilled at the idea of getting back to the desert. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You can't go back to Tatooine,” Harry warned Louis as thunder roared in the sky. “The First Order wants your head.” </span>
  <em>
    <span>And also, you’re my captive. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why me?” Louis questioned Harry, staring into his eyes. The bounty hunter had to turn his head away from his gaze. Those eyes were too distracting.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t know, you don’t look anything special to me,” Harry brushed it off, taking another look at the locator. “Maybe the rebels can help us, but we need to fix that first if we want to get you anywhere,” he went on, pointing at Louis’ bruised wrist.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“THE THUNDERBOLT WAS WITH THE HORANS FOR FIVE GENERATIONS!” Harry heard Niall scream hysterically to Zayn in the back. Just as if it was queued, the first raindrops started to fall down the sky. The whole situation was so pathetic that Harry could only smile at the fact that three criminals and two kids were stuck in a jungle during a thunderstorm without a ship.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam and Louis, instead of crying like Harry would’ve done, were smiling like kids and enjoying the water dripping down on their bodies. Harry took a quick glance at Louis’ eyes as they sparked in wonder. It was probably the first time he had ever seen rain, Harry thought.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He stood up and let the boys enjoy the water as he walked to the ship (or whatever was left of it) to look for something that would cure Louis’ wrist. Considering Niall’s deranged state, Harry thought it best to look for the first aid kit himself. When he found it, he walked back to Louis and Liam. He had a feeling those two would actually stand in the middle of the rainfall all day if they could.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Louis caught Harry staring at them, he shook his head and tried to recompose his seriousness as he asked: “So, you’re not with the First Order?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No,” Harry told him, as he sat down and grabbed Louis’ wrist.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And who do you work for?” Louis went on.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Someone who paid better,” Harry replied sharply.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis rolled his eyes. “Can’t you at least tell me?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry went on with his job, wrapping a bandage around Louis’ wrist. “We don't ask questions, it’s the rule.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is it the Resistance?” Louis insisted, ignoring what Harry had just said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The Resistance has their own people,” Harry explained, “they won't ask a bounty hunter to do their work.” He looked at Louis’ eyes and saw fear and confusion in them, but also determination and excitement. He could tell Louis was special, although he wasn't sure why yet. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry sighed. “Look, kid…” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not a kid, I’m 20,” Louis interrupted.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Whatever.” Harry ignored the fact that Louis was older than him. “If I knew who’s so desperate to get you, I would tell you, but I don't know who, or why, for that matter…” he went on, before being interrupted by Zayn’s yells which, somehow, were louder than the thunderstorm.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Stop whining, it’s almost perfect, look!” Zayn told Niall as he patted eagerly what was left of the right wing of the ship, making it collapse to the ground. Whatever Niall screamed was muted by the sound of a thunder raging.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry stared back at Louis and finished his sentence “...but it must be important.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When he finally finished wrapping up Louis’ wrist, Harry stood up and took a deep breath before approaching Niall and Zayn. As he walked away, he heard Louis say: “The galaxy is green after all Liam, can you believe it?” Despite being literally kidnapped, Louis sounded happy to be there. Harry only shook his head. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Niall, how many credits do you need to make it work?” he asked, coming closer to the couple, and immediately regretting it when he saw the hysterical look on Niall’s face. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, you mean before or after crashing it?” Niall questioned in an acid tone. “Because I needed a thousand credits before, now I can’t even imagine how much fixing this mess can cost you!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, cost </span>
  <em>
    <span>me</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Harry asked, surprised by the accusation. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and those two idiots!” Niall spat, pointing at Liam and Louis, who had turned their heads towards them. Zayn couldn't hold a laugh. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“AND YOU TOO!” Niall screamed, digging his finger into Zayn’s chest. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“ME?” the smuggler exclaimed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You were the one who said I had a ship!” Niall went on. The rain was slowing down, going from thick heavy raindrops to thinner ones, but the thunder was still raging above them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But you do! It’s here,” Zayn tried to smile as he pointed at the pile of trash.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It wasn’t fixed yet, and I completely finished wrecking it with the hyperspace jump, just to save all of your asses!” Niall yelled in rage. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry could only roll his eyes, annoyed at Niall’s whimpers. “We will get you a new ship, pilot.”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall’s voice cracked when he yelled: “I don’t want a new ship!” He stormed away from Harry, soaked in water. Zayn sent a dirty look at Harry before following Niall into the jungle calling out his name. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The storm was quickly dying, just as fast as it had begun. A few grey clouds moved away, letting the sunshine of dusk hit Harry’s face softly. He turned around to face Louis and Liam, who had witnessed the whole show. The disapproval on Louis' face shouldn't have hurt Harry as much as it did.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As the sun was setting down on the tropical planet, casting a golden light upon the odd group, Harry remembered the words of his mother: “</span>
  <em>
    <span>It’s a lonely life, being a bounty hunter.</span>
  </em>
  <span>”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>✨🪐🚀💫</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>As the night fell upon them, the group decided to gather around to light a bonfire and eat whatever food had survived the crash. After what had happened that afternoon, Harry decided to just shut up and don’t screw up things further with his comments. Niall seemed very grateful for that, and as time went on he calmed down thanks to Zayn. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Besides Harry, the rest of the group, despite the horrible situation they were stuck in, were actually having quite a good time, laughing and cracking jokes as they sat around the fire. Louis and Liam kept asking stupid questions to Zayn and Niall, and they replied with another even more stupid question than the first one. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But really, are we not scary?” Niall asked in disbelief, chewing on his food.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam shook his head. “We’re from Tatooine, we’ve seen worse people than you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn looked very disappointed, which made Harry a little happy. “We’ve lost it, dude, we’re not scary anymore,” he said in a sad but joking tone to Niall.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe we should become mandalorians, those guys scare the shit out of me,” Niall joked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Your </span>
  <em>
    <span>face</span>
  </em>
  <span> scares the shit out of me,” Zayn told him, making Louis and Liam almost choke on their food. Harry couldn't help but smirk and shake his head, which made Zayn look in his direction. Harry locked his green eyes on him and swallowed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why did you say the stormtroopers were after you?” Harry questioned him out of the blue, making all of the laughter stop. He’d wanted to know since they’d left Tatooine, but it had never been a good moment to ask until now. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well…” Zayn grinned, excited that someone had finally shown an interest. He grabbed his bag and took out...</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Holy moly!” Niall gasped.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was a lightsaber. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where did you get</span>
  <em>
    <span> that</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Harry managed to ask. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn looked around the group, admiring their shocked faces. “Jawas,” he replied, savouring his moment. “They were raiding a ship that crashed close to the cantina, and I convinced them to let me take it in exchange for my lunch. They had no idea what it was.” When he finished telling the story, Zayn turned around to look at Niall. “This can pay the repairs for The Thunderbolt”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>This could buy us a whole planet! </span>
  </em>
  <span>Harry thought, but after what had happened today, he preferred to keep his opinions to himself. And besides, he agreed. Right now, what they needed most was a ship.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall shook his head vigorously. “It’s yours, Z, I can’t take this,” he stated, staring into Zayn’s eyes and pushing the lightsaber to his chest. Niall seemed flattered by the offering, but Harry could tell the pilot was also very scared of the weapon.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Technically, it’s not mine,” Zayn smiled. The two stared at each other for a long moment, almost as if they had forgotten they were not alone, and Niall, instead of taking his hand away from Zayn’s chest, was in fact leaning closer and closer to the smuggler.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you think the rebels will help us?” Louis asked, and Harry thanked him quietly for breaking the very intimate and awkward moment so gracefully. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If we give them this, surely,” Zayn replied, swinging the lightsaber around. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But wouldn’t we get a better price for it onhe black market?” Liam questioned with a grin, making Harry roll his eyes.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where do you see a black market in this jungle, Payne?” the smuggler replied sassily. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>While Niall, Zayn and Liam discussed how they were going to get the lightsaber to the rebel base, Harry decided to approach Louis.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How’s your wrist, Tomlinson?” he asked as he reached for the boy’s wound.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis smiled. “Less like I’m dying and more like I’m slowly being tortured.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Harry looked up, he found Louis’ eyes on him, closer than before. This time, Harry managed to hold his gaze on his.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good,” he told him in a low tone as he smiled. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Great, we have a plan,” Niall spoke, calling Louis and Harry’s attention.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright,” Louis nodded, taking his eyes and his wrist away from Harry.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tomorrow, Liam and Zayn can set off to the rebel base and Zayn will get back here with help to fix The Thunderbolt,” Niall explained.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And when it’s done, you take us to the client and then I’ll pay you for the ride, both Liam’s and mine,” Harry told Niall, completing his plan.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Whoa, whoa, hang on,” Louis interrupted as he looked at Harry and raised his eyebrows. “The client?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Oh right, fuck.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry sighed tiredly as Louis went on. “You are </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> taking me anywhere”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you prefer, me or the First Order?” Harry asked him, losing his patience. He was exhausted of having this conversation. Louis was, by far, the most stubborn person he had ever met.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re a total stranger, I’m not going anywhere with you,” Louis shook his head.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re not safe at home,” Harry closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And I’m gonna be safe with </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Louis’ sassy tone drove him nuts.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m being paid to get you to someone,” he replied, raising his voice, although there was no need to since Liam, Zayn and Niall were observing them quietly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“To </span>
  <em>
    <span>who</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Louis demanded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry rolled his eyes. “I can’t say, and I don’t know, it’s the guild’s rule not to ask questions,” he repeated once again. “But I can guarantee you you’re gonna be safe with them,” he added, trying to reassure Louis by lowering his voice. He didn’t want to fight with him anymore.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s right, kid, you’re hopeless out there in Tatooine all by yourself,” Zayn decided to point out, to which Harry was very thankful. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis stood silently, staring at the rest of the group. He looked at Liam, his best friend, trying to find someone on his side.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I mean… Harry is right, Lou,” Liam said, taking both Louis and Harry by surprise.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?” Louis and Harry spat at the same time </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re defending the guy who almost blasted your brains out?” Louis asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam shook his head. “We were so close to the troopers back there, and they helped us get away. If the stormtroopers are really looking for you, the safest place to be is with them,” he explained in a sincere tone to Louis. There was actual concern in his voice, but he sounded convinced and determined. “I would suggest the Resistance but you’re not gonna be away from the First Order’s radar if you join them.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis only stared at his friend. Harry was sure that the two of them were having a conversation without using any words. For a moment, there was only silence as they all waited for Louis to act or say something back, but he only sighed and nodded his head before turning to look at Harry.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re gonna take the oath, Harry, if you want me to go with you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry couldn’t help but make a face when he heard Louis’ order. “An </span>
  <em>
    <span>oath</span>
  </em>
  <span>, what oath?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The desert oath,” Liam stated. Harry looked at Niall and Zayn, who only shrugged, just as confused as he was. Liam, on the other hand, was quietly watching how Louis stood up and handed his unwounded hand to Harry.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Rise,” Louis called. His eyes were dark, shiny and enchanting as they sparkled in the darkness and the light of the bonfire. Without breaking eye contact, Harry stood up very slowly and took Louis' hand.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Repeat after me: I…. your full name,” Louis said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I, Harry Edward Styles...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In the back, he heard Niall hold a laugh. “You never told us your middle name was </span>
  <em>
    <span>Edward.</span>
  </em>
  <span>”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry rolled his eyes and focused on Louis as he repeated, once again, this time louder “I, Harry Edward Styles...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis went on, unamused by the comments: “Take the desert oath and swear with my life...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Take the desert oath and swear with my life...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That my statements are true and my intentions genuine...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That my statements are true and my intentions genuine...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Or I shall be crushed to death by the Hutt.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Or I shall… be crushed to death by the Hutt?” Harry finished repeating, confused at the last part, although he was actually confused at the whole mysterious oath he’d apparently just taken with his captive. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis spat feistily on the floor so naturally and out of the blue that it took Harry for surprise.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ewww!” the bounty hunter cried. </span>
  <em>
    <span>This just couldn't get any weirder</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he thought.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You do it, it’s what sets the deal,” Louis explained eagerly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry took a moment to look at their hands intertwined before spitting on the floor, not very convinced. His pathetic spittle sent Zayn and Niall into laughter and applause, but Harry’s poor spitting skills seemed to have set the deal perfectly for Louis and Liam.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That was classy,” Niall remarked as he and Zayn were still clapping.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis seemed unimpressed by those two idiots. “It's settled then, I’m coming with you, bounty hunter,” he informed Harry, who only nodded, still weirded out but happy that Louis wasn’t going to fight him anymore. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Reminder: next time you need to get Louis to shut up, just use your saliva.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>3: the rebel </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Liam was too excited to sleep that night. In reality, everyone struggled to sleep, mainly due to the terrible situation they were stuck in, but Liam’s happiness was just so big that it didn't fit in his body and couldn't let him rest during the night. By the time dawn broke over D’Qar, he was the first one up, followed by Louis. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How’s that wrist?” he checked on his friend. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis yawned and rubbed his eyes. “Hurts, but I’ve had it worse.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam smiled. “Like that time we were running away from the Yawas and we fell down that cliff,” he remembered. Between the two of them, they had two twisted ankles and one broken arm.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We couldn’t work on the farm for weeks after that, your mum was so pissed,” Louis said, cracking a smile. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Both boys laughed at their memories together, a whole life by each other’s side. For as long as Liam could remember, Louis had been here for him, for every adventure and every mischief. Liam’s excitement, which hadn’t  let him sleep last night, suddenly turned into homesickness and nostalgia. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis only stared at his best friend. He knew him too well to not see that Liam’s mind was changing. “Are you really gonna leave, Liam?” he asked, trying to call him one last time into his senses. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam didn’t hesitate when he said yes. It hurt him, but it was the right thing. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And anything I might say won't stop you?” Louis went on asking, although he already knew the answer. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nope, it won’t,” Liam confirmed, although he didn’t feel as sure as last night. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re brave, Liam,” Louis smiled at him, looking proud of his brother. “You always do the right thing, those rebels don't deserve you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam only sighed, too flattered to say anything. “Are you gonna be okay with Harry?” he asked Louis. Liam trusted his friend, but he would never forget himself if anything happened to Louis while he wasn’t by his side. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I guess so…” Louis scratched his neck. “Why would the First Order want me?” Louis wondered out loud. He sounded unsure and scared. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam would’ve loved to know the answer himself. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>✨🪐🚀💫</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re off, say goodbye, Payne,” Zayn called as he strapped on his bag and checked he had the lightsaber with him before leaving their camp. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>This was it. Liam was officially going to join the Resistance.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can’t believe you’re really going,” Louis smiled as they hugged each other. Liam knew it was going to be the last time he would see his best friend in a while, so he squeezed Louis as hard as possible, and for as long as he could.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you gonna be okay?” Liam whispered in Louis’ ear as they embraced. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, I hope so,” Louis told him and they separated. “May the force be with you, asshole,” his best friend mocked him, with a linger of melancholy in his voice. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam smiled and chucked back his tears, “May the force be with you, Louis.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Standing on Louis’ left side was Niall, who was next in line to bid farewell to Liam. “Goodbye kid, you’re brave. Idiotic but brave,” the pilot smiled as they fist bumped. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Bye Niall, sorry about your ship,” Liam told him “May the force be with you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall shook his head when he heard the rebel’s catchphrase. “Yeah sure, whatever,” he brushed off.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The last one to say goodbye to Liam was Harry, who was standing a little bit further away from Niall with his arms crossed, looking defiant. Liam wasn’t keen on the whole plan, but there weren’t any other options that would keep Louis safe, although being with Harry couldn't, by any accounts, be considered as safe. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So you promise Louis is going to be okay, you’re gonna protect him?” Liam asked Harry when he approached him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The bounty hunter rolled his eyes “We swore last night, stop asking.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam only bit his tongue. </span>
  <em>
    <span>I have to trust him just as I trust Louis</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he reminded himself. “May the f–”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t,” Harry interrupted, raising a hand, “just a goodbye is okay”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay then,” Liam sighed. “Goodbye, bounty hunter.” He shook Harry’s hand, squeezing it firmly, just to remind Harry that he could beat his ass if he wanted to. Judging by Harry’s smile, he seemed to get the memo.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Goodbye, rebel,” Harry told him as Zayn got up and started to slowly walk away from the camp without waiting for Liam.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hope the next time we see each other, you won’t be pointing at me with a blaster,” Liam joked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That won’t depend on me,” was the last thing Liam heard as he set off, catching up with Zayn. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The jungle was hot and humid, and plants of all colors, sizes and shapes grew wherever they felt like. Flowers bloomed in colors Liam had never seen before, and trees went up as high as ships could go. Among the trees were all sorts of bugs living their normal lives, some tiny, some a little bigger and scarier, but all new and unknown to Liam. In less than 24 hours, he had seen, said and done more than ever before in his nineteen years, and he was mesmerized and excited by all the life that had been waiting for him outside of Tatooine.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam thought he would never get tired of sightseeing, but after walking in complete silence next to Zayn for a while, he decided to start some small talk.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t know your name.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn snorted. “What do you mean you don’t know my name?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I mean, I know it’s Zayn, that’s what they call you,” Liam tried to explain, “but I don’t know your full name”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s your full name?” Instead of replying to the question, Zayn shot the same one back.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Liam James Payne,” Liam announced proudly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Great.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And yours?” Liam insisted once again.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn turned around very slowly to look at him and say: “Zayn.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, come on,” Liam growled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If you keep asking, I’ll forbid you to call me Zayn, you’ll only address me as Z,” the smuggler threathered.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright,” Liam sighed, finally understanding that Zayn wasn’t going to talk much to him. And honestly, Liam didn’t mind not knowing much about him—he had to admit, the mysterious aura fitted him—but he couldn't stand walking in such an uncomfortable silence. So, he tried asking another question.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you from Tatooine?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do I look like I’m from Tatooine?” Zayn asked back in a poisonous tone. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam shook his head. “No, not really” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They fell silent again. Liam tried a third time.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And why did you become a smuggler?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why? Are you having second thoughts about being a rebel?” Zayn teased back, but it flew past Liam.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, no, just wondering,” the boy corrected.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tell me, Liam James Payne from Tatooine, why do you want to be a rebel?” Zayn questioned, a little bit with a sassy tone—which seemed to be inherently part of his normal tone of voice—but with a genuine interest to know more. The truth was that Liam had never been asked directly, so he hadn't put much effort in figuring out a decent answer. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He shuggled. “Have you seen where I’m from? I want something better for my family, we all deserve a better life,” he managed to explain, to which Zayn only nodded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And you think the Resistance is gonna give you that?” he questioned Liam. There was rage in his voice, slowly building up. “Do you think living under their rules is gonna make your dusty little rock you call home a better place? First Order and New Republic are nothing but the same scum,” he spat. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>At this, Liam couldn't help using his smart mouth. “You only say that because for both the New Republic and the First Order, you’re a criminal.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, exactly,” Zayn agreed, giving him a sour smile, “and who’s there fighting to give </span>
  <em>
    <span>us</span>
  </em>
  <span> a better life?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They fell in the awkward silence again as they kept on walking. But this time, it was Zayn who broke it, just a moment later. “Between you and me… Why does Harry want Louis?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam snored. “You ask me like I know.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But is Louis that special? You’re his friend, you must know.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s the only boy in Tatooine who can do a cartwheel with one arm,” Liam joked, sort of. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What about his family?” Zayn went on as they kept making their way through the jungle.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He must have one, but they abandoned him when he was 9 years old,” Liam explained. He remembered the day his parents had showed up with him. It wasn't a topic Liam and Louis discussed often, despite being best friends. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Really?” Zayn asked, intrigued and shocked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, he’s lived with me and my parents and sisters ever since we found him. He can barely remember anything from his past, or his parents at all,” Liam explained. “You think Louis’ real parents have something to do with him being chased by the First Order?” he asked Zayn. It wasn’t a thought that had crossed his mind before, but it was a fair guess.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Could be... Maybe they need Louis as a bait to get to his parents,” Zayn replied.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But they abandoned him, why would they care if he’s captured by the First Order?” Liam questioned back, trying to get his mind to work, and searching his memory for information on Louis’ parents.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn carried on explaining his theory.w“Maybe his family is the one who sent Harry to get him.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam shook his head. “Again, same thing. If they wanted Louis back, they would’ve come to Tatooine, it’s not easy to get out of there.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, you did, Payne,” Zayn smirked, snapping Liam out of his thoughts and making him smile because well, he </span>
  <em>
    <span>was </span>
  </em>
  <span>right, he did leave Tatooine after all. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two boys fell silent again, but now Liam felt much more confident to ask something that was more than small talk. “Now it’s my turn to ask.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn rolled his eyes, but smiled. “When did this become 20 questions?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How old is Harry?” Liam enquired, ignoring him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Eighteen.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?” Liam choked. He wasnt surewhether to feel relieved that Harry was much younger than Louis, or to feel stupid he’d even felt intimidated by him at all. “And how come he’s a bounty hunter at eighteen?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“His father was one, but he died not so long ago, and Harry was forced to take his place,” Zayn explained, taking Liam by surprise a little.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh,” he only muttered. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Zayn said, “he’s not really keen on it, but he needs to feed what’s left of his family.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s left?” Liam asked, confused.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“His sister was taken away as a kid. That’s why his father became a bounty hunter, to find her. Now it’s Harry’s turn, and he’s their last hope,” Zayn went on, staring down to the ground as they came closer to the rebel base, but Liam wasn’t even thinking about the rebels anymore.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wow, I had no clue,” he confessed, feeling a little sad for Harry. If he had known from the beginning, Liam would’ve been less judgemental about him for sure. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Niall told me the story.They grew up together, but Harry doesn’t know I know, so never tell him I told you, or he’ll blast our guts out, first Niall’s, then mine and then yours,” Zayn warned him as they laughed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The ground stopped being mud and dirt and became pavement, as they were walking down a landing track. They had entered the rebel’s base. When Liam looked up, he saw that the place was almost desertic. There were many empty ships sitting on the track, since most people were probably having lunch in one of the buildings standing at their right. Liam’s thrill to finally be there, in the Resistance base, wasn’t as intense as in the morning. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m gonna talk to the officers. You… I guess you’re off now,” Zayn scratched his neck, staring at Liam.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, I think so,” Liam stated, knowing he sounded unconvinced. But he couldn't back up now that he was finally here, after such an exciting trip.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn extended his hand and shook Liam’s firmly. “Goodbye, Liam James Payne,” he smirked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Goodbye, Zayn,” Liam sighed as he returned the smile. “May the force be with you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn shook his head. “You’re gonna need it more than I do.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As both boys walked in opposite directions, Liam’s heartbeat started to race like a drum. He had no clue where to go, or who to look for, or what to say. Before, he’d only thought that he was going to walk in and that would be it, and that maybe the rebels would be waiting for him with balloons and cookies. But maybe this was going to be harder than he really gave it credit for. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As he walked away, Liam heard Zayn’s voice cry something out to him in the distance. “Malik.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam turned around to look at him. “What?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s Zayn Javadd Malik,” the smuggler repeated his full name as he smiled one last time at Liam, before turning around and heading away to find General Organa. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam wanted to follow Zayn and help him, spend more time with him, but he knew he was on his own now. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Not on my own, I have the rebels</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he tried to convince himself. Speaking of rebels, he had to find some. Across the track, Liam saw two pilots. One was human and the other was a sullustan, Liam recognised. They were working on a ship and chatting. Liam took a deep breath and walked to them. “Hi.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two pilots stopped working and turned around, at the same time to look at Liam. “Hello?” the sullustan spoke.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m– sorry” Liam hesitated. “I’m Liam Payne” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>None of the pilots seemed amused by this. “Is someone expecting you or…?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, no, I just– eh,” Liam stuttered, but he cleared his throat and swallowed his nerves. “I’m here to join you guys.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two pilots stared up and down at Liam, then at each other, and then back at Liam. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I want to be in the Resistance,” Liam repeated, trying to sound more confident. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you know how to fight?” the human asked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam tried to explain himself. “No, but–“</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you have a blaster?” the sullustan interrupted him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you </span>
  <em>
    <span>know</span>
  </em>
  <span> how to use a blaster?” the human added. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can you pilot a ship?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you know anything about mechanics?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Or spacecrafts?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Droids?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Commanding?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam felt overwhelmed by the bombardment of questions. “I– I don’t–“ he stuttered. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Out, kid,” the human pilot spoke before getting back to work. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam could only stand in place, shocked and confused about the whole conversation. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>What?</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The pilot rolled his eyes before barking at Liam. “I said, get lost!” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As Liam slowly walked away from the two pilots and back where he came from, he thought he should’ve felt sad, or mad, or disappointed in himself. He’d wanted so hard to be there, to be part of the Resistance. He’d worked so much, and done so many crazy things to get there, and now that he’d been rejected like that, instead of feeling sad, Liam felt </span>
  <em>
    <span>relief</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn had been right, Liam was having second thoughts. He’d been having second thoughts the moment he’d known that Louis, his best friend and brother, needed him by his side. He’d had second thoughts as he’d laughed with Niall, or chatted with Zayn. He’d had second thoughts when he’d heard Harry’s story. How were the rebels to help him? How were any of them to help?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn’s words echoed in Liam’s mind. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“First Order and New Republic are nothing but the same scum”. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Liam wasn’t sure if he would consider them the same thing, but both had treated Liam the same way, as well as Zayn, and Niall, and Harry. And Louis. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Shit Liam, you can’t let Louis behind. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He could’t let </span>
  <em>
    <span>any of them</span>
  </em>
  <span> behind. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“ZAYN!” Liam shouted, running towards the smuggler. Thankfully, he hadn’t found who he was looking for, and still had the lightsaber with him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Liam?” the smuggler turned around, confused to see him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve been thinking,” Liam told him, catching his breath, “of what you said to me, about having second thoughts”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn nodded. “Yeah?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah…” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn smirked at Liam. “And what do you think?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam looked around. The landing track was empty. No rebels, no pilots, no droids, only Liam and Zayn…</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And a fleet of ships to choose from. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>4: the smuggler </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>In all his years as a smuggler and a criminal, Zayn would’ve </span>
  <em>
    <span>never</span>
  </em>
  <span> imagined this moment. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As they soared across the jungle, closely chased by speeders blasting against them, Liam Payne was laughing like Zayn had never seen him before. He wondered if maybe Liam had gone insane. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Unauthorised launch on platform 3,” the sound of the alarm echoed in the rebel base, but Zayn and Liam were already too far away to hear it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Suddenly, the ship’s transmitters twitched and a deep male voice was heard in the cockpit. “This is Poe Dameron, stop the ship immediately and come down unarmed,” the rebel warned. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn wanted to reply with a witty answer, but before he had time to even think, Liam got ahead of him and screamed: “Suck my balls, rebel!” before hanging up on Poe.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Yes, Liam had definitely gone insane.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Liam, connect the radio transmission to The Thunderbolt,” Zayn commanded as their laughter died off. He wasn’t too keen on being a pilot—that was Niall’s job—and flying a stolen ship while people shot at you wasn’t an easy task, but he was the only one who knew how to do it at that moment. They were short of crew and had no one to shoot the cannons, so Zayn had to get away from the rebels as fast as he could, and dodge their shots. Liam struggled a little bit next to him, but overall he was a good copilot, and he managed to make contact with The Thunderbolt.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Who is this?” Niall asked, and Zayn swore he had never felt such relief at hearing his voice.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The rebel and the smuggler are glad to announce your ride will be there in a minute,” Zayn joked, smirking. The ship trembled when a rebel blasted at them on the left side.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But we’re not alone,” Liam added while Zayn took the steering wheel and sped up, dodging along the trees, trying to dismiss the rebels. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“LIAM!” Zayn heard Louis cry in excitement. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The rebels are right behind us, so you better move fast,” Liam told them, wasting no time in small talk. With a swift movement, Zayn managed to bring the ship out of sight from the rebels, but they were nearby. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do we have to do?” Niall asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Get all the important stuff packed and be ready to go,” Liam told him before hanging up.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They reached the boys without any rebels following them, but it only was a matter of time before they found them. Zayn managed to land swiftly in the campment, avoiding crushing what was left of The Thunderbolt.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Go go go!” Zayn cried as he and Liam hopped off the ship and helped them carry all their stuff.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Holy moly! A </span>
  <span>VCX-100 light freighter,” Niall exclaimed, holding his head, completely shocked. Zayn didn’t have time to mock Niall, they had to get going.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What happened?” Harry asked Zayn.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What aren’t you with the rebels?” Louis asked Liam.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“WE CAN DISCUSS THIS LATER!” Liam shouted hysterically as the five boys climbed up the ship, leaving the camp behind.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn clapped his hands. “Alright let’s do this, Niall can you fly this?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall smiled like a kid in a candy store, he couldn't be any more excited. “I can fly anything,” he winked at Zayn. “Liam, Harry, to the cannons. Zayn, copilot,” he commanded, and the group split up. Zayn followed Niall and Louis to the cockpit. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When the ship rose above the trees, the rebels started to follow them and shoot again. Poe Dameron must’ve been really mad, because they had almost all the X-Wings fleet following them.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They’re gonna get us,” Louis trembled. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They won’t,” Niall told him, sounding confident. “If I can get us away from the stormtroopers with The Thunderbolt, imagine what I can do with this baby,” he smiled, tapping the board. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn rolled his eyes, happy to be copilot again. “Harry, where to?” he asked the bounty hunter.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>From the ship’s transmitter, he heard Harry’s voice answer: “We need to get to Takodana.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam and Harry turned out to be great shooters, blasting away the X-Wings and making them crash against one another. Niall was trying his best to get away from them, but the more ships went down, the more others appeared out of nowhere. When Zayn looked to the side, he noticed they were slowly being surrounded by X-Wings.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They’re right behind us,” he warned Niall. They made a great team, but there were too many of them to handle.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re almost out,” Niall told him. “The moment we go over the atmosphere, I can jump to hyperspace.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They were really close to making it out, but suddenly the ship crashed with something, and shook violently before tumbling down. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shit!” Niall spat as he managed to steady the ship once more and race away from the rebels.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What was that?” Louis and Zayn cried at the same time.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Force shield, they’re enclosing us,” Niall explained. Across the atmosphere’s surface, there was a thin transparent field forming above them, closing up the planet.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The ship trembled once more and Zayn heard Liam shout: “Fuck!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Liam!” Louis cried. The commanding board indicated one of the blasters was out. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We lost a cannon,” Zayn told Niall as he pushed away the emergency buttons and checked on the rest of the damages. Niall only sped up the ship as he murmured under his breath, trying to make it past the shield. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Liam!” Louis called once again, sounding desperate.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m alright,” they heard his voice say through the speakers, and Zayn breathed again. “But I can’t shoot, my blaster is out.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn shook his head and looked at Niall. He trusted him, knew he was a great pilot, but they had never been in such a tight position before. “They’re gonna get us.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They won’t,” Niall denied stubbornly. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Across the sky, Zayn could see the other half of the shield reaching closer to them. It was over. “The shield is closing,” he warned.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn tried his best to save them. He pushed all the buttons and looked around, trying to find a way to maybe stop the shield using the commands of their own ship, but there was nothing. He glanced at Louis, who was very pale. He had a stern look on his face and his eyes were closed. His left hand was extended up to the sky, and the other was clenching on Zayn’s shoulder as hard as he could. Instead of looking scared or nervous, he seemed peaceful and deeply concentrated. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“YES!” Niall exclaimed next to him, bringing Zayn back to reality. When he looked up to the front, he noticed they’d managed to slip away from the shield just in time, and they were now flying quickly across the atmosphere.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Farewell, rebels!” Zayn heard Harry exhale in relief. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We did it!” Liam cried too.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The grin on Niall’s face was huge. “Preparing for the hyperspace jump, everyone be ready,” he informed the boys.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn couldn’t believe it. They’d really managed to steal a ship and escape from the rebels. He turned around to look at Niall. “You did it, you son of a bitch, you did it,” he whispered and they hugged tightly. Zayn hadn’t realized how scared he’d got for a second, but he should’ve never underestimated Niall. As they embraced, Zayn looked to the side and saw Louis, passed out on the floor. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Louis!” he called him, making Niall turn around to look at him too. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What happened?” Zayn heard Harry speak through the transmitters as they rushed to help Louis. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall took him by the shoulders and shook him.“Louis, talk to us!”. At that moment, Harry and Liam walked into the cockpit. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tomlinson, I need you alive, come on,” Harry kneeled down, looking worried. Liam, however, didn’t seem too concerned. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s alright,” Liam explained, “it happens to him, whenever he’s too stressed or agitated... It just happens,” He didn’t seem to know what was wrong with Louis precisely.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is he alright? Are you sure?” Harry asked Liam, sending him a deadly stare. Zayn thought Liam should’ve been the one to freak out, but he was really calm. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, I know he is,” Liam stared back at Harry, not intimidated by him. “Come on Zayn, help me carry him away.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall elbowed him on the side, and Zayn shook his head back to reality. He had lost himself in his thoughts, remembering what had happened a moment ago as they were escaping the rebels. Liam really didn’t need Zayn to carry Louis away, but he helped him anyways. They laid him down on a bed in one of the rooms on the left side of the ship. Zayn couldn't help but stare at Liam, then back at Louis, then back at Liam.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So,” Zayn cleared his throat, “you say this happens to him occasionally?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes.” Liam’s reply was short and dry, and he was scratching his temple, looking tired. Very tired. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But why?” Zayn went on.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam only sighed. “If he’s nervous, or living through a stressful situation, he gets very heated up and end ups fainting. But he’s going to wake up in a second,” he brushed off. In the bed, Louis was already moving around and slowly blinking.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll go get some water for when he wakes up,” Zayn excused himself and walked out of the room. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His mind wandered back to his mum and the stories she used to tell him and his sisters, back in Jakku, about wizards with great powers, who could connect with the energy of the universe and do incredible things. Zayn knew it was a crazy thought, as his time on the streets working as a smuggler and a thief had teached him those were only bedtime stories. All Jedis, if they had even existed at all, were gone. Dead. But after what he’d seen today, after what Louis had done, Zayn wasn’t so sure anymore. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn’s mind got to work, connecting the dots. Why else would the First Order be looking for Louis? He was an orphan kid who didn’t know anything about his past, who could make things happen around him with his mind. His parents, who no one knew anything about, had abandoned him when he was a kid. Jedis were a myth, but Louis was a real boy made of bones, he was there and he did… he </span>
  <em>
    <span>saved</span>
  </em>
  <span> them.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>We have a lightsaber, for fucks sake. How impossible can it be? </span>
  </em>
  <span>Zayn thought to himself. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Instead of heading to the ship’s cargo, Zayn went to the cockpit, where he found Harry and Niall.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright, care to explain one more time?” Harry asked Niall, who was sitting down, also looking very tired. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The shield </span>
  <em>
    <span>froze</span>
  </em>
  <span> halfway of closing,” Niall repeated. They were all aware it made no sense, but for Zayn it was starting to. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re lucky bastards,” Harry muttered. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn walked into the cockpit. “Don’t know if it was luck.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry and Niall stared at each other. “What are you saying, Zayn?” Niall wondered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I was talking to Liam, about Louis…” Zayn began to explain, taking a big breath. His mind was a rushing mess. “Harry, who is looking for him?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry crossed his arms. “I can’t–”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Say it, the code of the lame bounty hunter’s guild, I know,” Zayn interrupted him, losing his patience. “But don’t you realize what happened?” he stared at the both of them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn knew Niall had already caught up with him. “Are you saying…?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Louis stopped the shield.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry’s eyes went back and forth between Niall and Zayn, trying to understand the situation. “But how?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think I know how,” Zayn declared. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry shook his head violently. “You’re delusional.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall didn’t say a word, he only looked down at Zayn’s bag. All eyes were on the lightsaber. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn only sighed. “There’s only one way to find out.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They all headed back to the rooms, where Louis was already sitting up on his bed, chatting with Liam who was catching him up on his and Zayn’s adventure. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey guys,” Louis greeted them, rubbing his eyes. He was still very pale, but looked much better than before. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Louis, how do you feel?” Harry immediately asked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve been better, not gonna lie,” Louis smirked, moving around in the bed. Zayn didn’t waste more time, and took the lightsaber out, handling it to Louis.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Everyone was dead silent and staring at Louis, who was only looking at the lightsaber. “What do you w–”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Come on,” Zayn rushed him. He knew everyone was thinking the same thing, and he knew that deep down, Louis was thinking it too. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis settled back into the bed, and slowly reached for the lightsaber. Just like he had in the cockpit, he closed his eyes and relaxed. He held it so naturally, although it was a little big for his hands, but it fitted him almost like a glove, as if his hands were made to wield lightsabers. Louis' breath shortened and his chest moved up and down, but the lightsaber did nothing. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis opened his eyes and immediately dropped down on the bed, where Liam was ready to catch him. “I, I can’t–” he stuttered, catching his breath. “I’m too tired.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn was excited, despite the fact that nothing had really happened. “Do you all realize what this means?” he questioned, turning around to look at the rest of the group. Going by their looks on their faces, none of them seemed to have understood. Zayn looked back at Louis before saying, almost in a whisper: “You have The Force.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn thought the deep silence in the room was due to the shock this revelation had caused, but a moment later he heard Harry laughing uncontrollably. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?” Zayn asked, confused. Harry couldn't stop laughing, while Niall had a sad and worried look on his face. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Those are fairy tales, Z,” Niall told him, trying his best not to hurt his feelings. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry, on the other hand, seemed to think that Zayn was hilarious. “Jedis don’t exist. Those are stories your mummy told you before bed, about Luke Skywalker,” he mocked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t say that! They are true!” Zayn barked. He shouldn’t have felt this angry, but he knew what he’d seen. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And where are the Jedis? Where’s Luke Skywalker?” Harry went on laughing. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn went to throw himself at Harry, but Niall took his hand out of the blue, immediately calming him down. Someone as tormented and sad as Harry would never understand, Zayn thought. But part of him knew he sounded like a madman, dreaming out loud about Jedis. There was no reason to fight about it, Zayn could only look down and walk out of the room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He left the lightsaber behind him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>5: the Jedi </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>This was Louis’ first time flying in a ship.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The last trip with Niall’s Thunderbolt could not be considered, by any means, flying. It was more like falling, to be more precise. But this time, now that they’d lost track of the rebels behind them and had a beautiful ship, Louis could actually consider it flying. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He tried to enjoy the trip as much as he could, but the whole group was in a weird mood, and Louis knew it was because of him and of whatever the fuck had happened today with the shield and the lightsaber. To be honest with himself, he wasn’t sure what had happened either. Something inside him had called him to do it, an energy, something much stronger and bigger than him. It was almost uncontrollable. It had always been that way for him, things happening around him. </span>
  <em>
    <span>He</span>
  </em>
  <span> made them happen, somehow. But this was… bigger than anything he had ever done before.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis had heard the stories about Jedis before, like all little kids across the galaxy had. A part of him was sure that those were only fairytales, but Louis was so desperate at this point, so tired of living in the shadows of the unknown, that maybe dreaming about Jedis wasn’t that crazy anymore. The whole situation—first Liam, then Harry and now the rebels—was really stressful. Being taken away from his home was stressful and scared him a lot, but he’d taken an oath with Harry, that wherever the hunter was taking him was a safe place. Louis could only hope he could find answers there. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He sometimes felt a little dizzy over the trip. Zayn told him it was pretty normal, considering it was his first time flying, but Harry blamed it on Niall’s piloting skills. Niall took it </span>
  <em>
    <span>very</span>
  </em>
  <span> personally. The bickering, teasing and joking didn’t stop until they reached their destination, but it managed to lift up everyone’s mood and make them laugh again. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Welcome to Takodana, boys!” Niall exclaimed excitedly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Through the window, Louis stared at the world below him, as they approached the planet. The view was breathtaking, with thousands of miles of pure green forest, surrounded by a lake with the clearest sparkling blue water Louis had ever seen before, all underneath the brightest blue sky. He had always known there were more than dry deserts in the galaxy, but he’d had no idea there could be</span>
  <em>
    <span> so much green</span>
  </em>
  <span> in the universe. First in D’Qar, and now here. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But despite the gorgeous views, what had really caught Louis’ attention, and everyone else's too, was the big old castle standing on the shore of the lake. Takodana was known to be a heaven for smugglers and thieves, as well as the home of the Pirate Queen, but despite that, neither Harry, Zayn or Niall had visited it before. Louis felt happy that Liam and him were not the only ones who were clueless for once. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry had orders to walk Louis inside the castle, but there weren’t any other detailed instructions. So, the group only landed the ship (“Oh Niall, so you do actually know how to land properly?”) and walked into the castle, trying not to draw too much attention to themselves.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There were people from all across the galaxy in the castle, many of whom were friends of either Zayn, Harry or Niall, and they greeted the boys cheerfully as they made their way in. Louis was amazed and excited, but everytime he remembered why he was there, that excitement died down a little bit, and the anxiety slowly started to build up instead.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The entrance to the castle was covered in hundreds of flags of all colors, and rising above them all was a gigantic statue welcoming all the smugglers. The inside was packed with people having fun, drinking fireball whiskey, playing cards and chatting very loudly above the music. Louis and the rest of the group followed Harry to the bar, where he began asking about his client. Louis sat down on a chair and looked around the place, trying to figure out if this feeling inside his chest was fear or excitement. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As his mind drifted away, Louis didn’t realise there was a woman staring deeply at him. The humanoid was only 4 foot tall, and she had orange wrinkly skin and the most enormous pair of glasses he had ever seen before. When their eyes met, she smiled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“When you live long enough, you see the same eyes in different people, and the last time I saw those eyes was 11 years ago, when your mother brought you to me, still a little boy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis shook his head in disbelief. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The rest of the group noticed that the woman was talking to Louis, and Harry rushed to them. “Are you Maz Katana?” he asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, and you must be the bounty hunter,” she spoke, looking up at Harry in a reproachful face, as she held Louis’ wounded wrist with her tiny hands. “I told you bring him whole.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This was the best I could do,” Harry sighed, but Maz Katana had all her attention back on Louis.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ve grown taller. The last time I saw you, you were almost my size!” she exclaimed. When she took a look at the group who had gathered around her, she gasped at Liam. “Oh, and you must be Liam! I recognise a Payne when I see one.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam was as shocked as Louis was that she seemed to know who he was. “I am, yes, how do you…?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sit down, all of you seem exhausted,” she cut him, and took the group to a private room in the castle, further away from the loud music and the snoopers. They sat down at a round table, with a beautiful view of the lake and the trees, but Maz rushed away from the room before Louis could say anything.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, this is the person who was looking for me?” Louis asked Harry in confusion, but Harry seemed to be as clueless as the rest of them. Before they could talk again, she walked back with a tray of…</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“FOOD!” Liam, Zayn and Niall shouted at the same time as they pounced on the plates filled with delicious food. Louis’ stomach growled with hunger, but his mind was too busy to care about eating. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maz Katana took Louis’ wrist, ripped off the old bandage, and began healing it, applying a thick cold paste around it. Louis didn’t realise how much it had been hurting him until that moment. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He cleared his throat. “You said something, about my–”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mother,” Maz nodded, finishing the sentence.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis felt like his chest could explode at any moment. The answers he had so desperately looked for seemed to be right in front of him. He had a family, he had a mother. Louis was so excited and desperate he could barely talk. “Where is she? Is she here? Am I gonna meet h–?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She passed away, Louis,” Maz Katana interrupted before he could go on, and the whole world fell quiet all of the sudden. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oh.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She brought you to me when you were only 9 years old, and asked me to hide you away,” she carried on explaining. Louis saw how the boys stopped paying attention to the food and  focused on the old woman instead. “I sent you to Tatooine, the Paynes owed me a favour and they took you in.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis could only blink and look out  the window. He didn’t dare to look back at Maz, or Liam, or Harry. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Especially</span>
  </em>
  <span> Harry. He only stared at the sky, the water, and the birds flying by the trees. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maz Katana kept on talking. “But now, with the First Order rising to power, I had to get you back where I can watch you, Louis, like I promised her I would.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her last words managed to snap Louis back to reality: the First Order was looking for him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis looked back at Maz Katana and shook his head. “Hold on, I’m missing something”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The old lady sighed. “What do you remember, from your childhood?” she asked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis’ mind was, as always, a mess. Just like he couldn’t explain his powers, he couldn’t explain why his mind was so chaotic. He felt frustration and sadness, but also worry and fear. “No-nothing,” he stuttered. “It’s all foggy in my mind”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I assumed so, and it’s better that way,” she nodded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis went back to stare out the window as he bit his lip. The hopes that he had built up had been shattered as quickly as they had emerged, but there really wasn’t any time to be sad, with the bad guys breathing down his neck. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Things were not adding up to Louis, he knew there was a missing piece in this puzzle. He was hoping to find answers, and Maz Matana had them. He couldn’t let his pain get in the way. So he kept on asking, even though it hurt: “But why does the First Order want me? Does it have anything to do with my mum?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The alien sighed as she remembered. “Both you and your mother are force-sensitive. Those weird things that happen around you, the way stuff conveniently occurs out of magic are not just luck, Louis,</span>
  <em>
    <span> you</span>
  </em>
  <span> make them happen, using...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The Force, like the Jedis,” Zayn finished the sentence, and Louis couldn’t tell if he was confused or excited.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And that’s why they’re after him,” Louis heard Harry say from across the table. The pieces were falling into place for him as well. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The First Order is not actively looking for Louis, but if Kylo Ren finds out there are still force-sensitive people alive, then he will hunt them down, and that’s why I had to bring him back here,” Maz explained to the bounty hunter. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam stared at Louis and asked in disbelief: “But wait a moment, so</span>
  <em>
    <span> your mum </span>
  </em>
  <span>was a Jedi?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So is </span>
  <em>
    <span>he</span>
  </em>
  <span> a Jedi?” Zayn asked Maz, pointing at Louis. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> a Jedi?” Niall asked Maz, pointing at her. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry snorted. “Stop saying Jedi!” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maz Katana couldn’t help but laugh at the boy’s excitement and shock. “I am no Jedi, but I know The Force,” she began to explain as she stared back at Louis. “It surrounds every living thing, some a little bit more than others, like your mother, like </span>
  <em>
    <span>you,</span>
  </em>
  <span>” she smiled. Louis’ wasn’t feeling so sad anymore. Finding out about his mother was painful, but it also meant finding about who he was, about what he could do. “Being a Jedi, however, takes years and years of training, being sensitive to the force is not enough,” Maz finished off. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s why you couldn’t use the lightsaber?” Zayn asked Louis. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He probably was exhausted,” Maz replied instead. “What you did in D’Qar, Louis, took immense power.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis smiled. “How did you know that was me?” he questioned, speaking for the first time in a while. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Like I said, I know The Force,” Maz smirked at him. “Don’t worry about the rebels, I explained the situation to them, and Leia owed me a favour, so they’re gonna let this incident slip away,” she reassured them. “But  in the future, try not to steal their ships.” Louis saw how Liam blushed when he heard that. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis settled down in his chair, and although he was more confused than ever before, he also felt a great relief, a weight lifted off his shoulders. He had a family, after all, he had a mother who’d sacrificed her life for him. He had The Force, he’d inherited it from her, and it was the reason he could make things happen around him. For a second, Louis was unable to hear any music or noise, and he blinked violently, wanting to avoid crying in front of his friends. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maz Kanata noticed how overwhelmed he looked. “I wish I knew more about what happened, but I can guarantee you this, Louis,” she reassured him, holding his hand. “She loved you, so much”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis wanted to thank Maz, but he knew that if he opened his mouth he would start crying, so he only smiled at her, and she nodded in understanding, almost as if she could read his thoughts.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now, you said something about a lightsaber, young boy?” Maz Katana turned around to look at Zayn with these freakishly big eyes. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, I– Zayn nodded, but he interrupted himself mid-sentence. “Sorry, </span>
  <em>
    <span>we</span>
  </em>
  <span> have one”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“May I take a look at it?” The alien asked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t–” Zayn probably wanted to explain he had left it behind on the ship, but Niall stopped him and handed him his bag with the lightsaber, sending him a wink. The smuggler smiled at Niall and turned around to look at Louis, waiting for his approval. He nodded, so Zayn took the lightsaber and handed it in. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maz Katana gasped as she took it with her hands. She expected it very closely and quietly before looking back at Zayn. “Where did you get this?” She asked seriously. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Jawas, from a shipwreck in the outskirts of </span>
  <span>Mos Eisley, in Tatooine,” Zayn explained. All eyes were on the lightsaber. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This is Luke’s,” Maz murmured, looking somehow as surprised as the boys were, who only stared at each other in disbelief. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You mean </span>
  <em>
    <span>the</span>
  </em>
  <span> Luke?” Zayn asked, unable to contain his excitement. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The stories are true?” Liam questioned. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry shook his head. “I thought he was a myth.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Luke Skywalker is real, and this is his lightsaber,” Maz told them, placing it in the middle of the table. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn’s grin was hilarious. He had been right, all along. About The Force, the Jedis, Luke and Louis. Niall and Harry would’ve probably fought him if it wasn’t for the utter and complete shock they were in. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maz Katana looked up and down at Louis, as she was studying him. “You say you couldn’t use it?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis gulped. “No.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She nodded, before looking back at the sword. “This lightsaber doesn’t belong to you, then, it’s waiting for someone more powerful.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is it waiting for Luke?” Louis asked her. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Luke disappeared after Kylo Ren’s betrayal to the dark side. Nobody has heard of him ever since.” Maz sighed. “General Leia Organa is looking for him, so he can help her fight Luke’s nephew—her son—and the First Order” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The group didn’t speak for a while, and resumed their meal. Louis’ hunger had come back, so he chugged what he could with one hand as Maz Katana finished healing his wounded wrist. Whatever she put on was cold and relaxing, and it made his bruises disappear. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How does that feel?” she smiled at him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Much better, thank you,” Louis nodded. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once the dinner was over, they all stood up. All the boys smiled at Louis, and he could feel his eyes getting watery as Liam hugged him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maz Katana sighed as she looked up at the group. “Louis, I brought you here–”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You mean, you paid Harry,” Louis interrupted, making them laugh. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, well,” she chuckled and agreed, “I paid Harry to get you here, because I haven’t seen you in 11 years, but when I look at you, at all of you…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis took a look at the odd group standing by his side. A pilot without a ship, a smuggler carrying a lightsaber, his best friend who’d tried to run away to join the Resistance, and a bounty hunter looking for him. They’d had a rough start, Louis had to admit, but now, after everything they’d been  through, Louis couldn’t imagine how his new life could go on without any of them. If it wasn’t for Zayn, Liam, Niall and Harry, Louis would’ve never found out about his mum and his powers. He was eternally grateful for finding them and, judging by their looks on their faces, they felt the same way about Louis too. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Let’s make a deal,” Maz Katana told them. “I trade Louis for the lightsaber. I’ll keep it safe until the moment the galaxy needs it.” Louis could only laugh and nod. An untrained Jedi in exchange for Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber seemed like a decent offer. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I see troubling times ahead of us.” Maz continued “The Sith, the Empire, and now the First Order... But wherever there’s darkness, the light rises too, and I’ll be ready for when that moment comes.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The future was worrying, but Louis had nothing to fear if he had them by his side. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maz called a butler into the room to take the lightsaber and the food away, and Louis saw her whisper something to him before he walked away. “Take care, Louis. As long as you avoid troopers or don't walk directly into Kylo Ren, you’re gonna be fine. That is general advice for all of you, actually,” the alien smiled at them as the butler walked in, carrying a wooden box. “Louis, this is for you,” she told him as she handed the box to him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Somehow, Louis knew what it was before opening it. A long metal cylinder, carved with ancient runes, was laying inside. As soon as he took it out, the lightsaber turned on, making all of them jump back. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It felt so natural on his hand, like it was an extension of himself. The glow of the lightsaber was reflected in Louis’ eyes in the same way it had in his mum’s, many moons ago. The green light echoed in Louis’ mind, bringing back memories he thought he’d lost. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My mother’s lightsaber,” he whispered. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maz Katana nodded. “You’ll have to keep it very safe, Louis. I can’t train you, I am no Jedi, but my only advice is: always reach for the light.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The boy swallowed and looked down at her, feeling his eyes watering. “Where is the light?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where your mother is,” the old woman smiled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis sighed, and put the lightsaber—</span>
  <em>
    <span>his</span>
  </em>
  <span> lightsaber—inside his pocket. “Thanks, Maz.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re welcome here anytime you need me. All of you are welcome!” she exclaimed with her arms wide open as they left the table behind and walked into the common room of the castle. “Oh!” she suddenly gasped, “Liam, I told your parents you’re here, they’re on the phone now.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, right,” Liam sighed, and walked towards the butler, who was holding a phone by the entrance of the kitchen. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How do you know the Paynes?” Louis asked her. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maz smirked. “That’s a story for another day,” she brushed off, winking an eye on him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Between the noise, the music and the chaos, Louis was able to hear Mrs. Payne shouting on the phone: “LIAM JAMES PAYNE WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The group laughed and said goodbye to Maz Katana before walking out of the castle. The sky seemed even bluer than before, and the wind on Louis’ face was refreshing and calming. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, I guess this is it,” he sighed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It is,” Niall agreed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn turned to look at Louis. “You’re not gonna stay here with Maz?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You heard her, she traded me like a toy,” Louis joked. “I am free I guess, and there’s no way I'm going back to Tatooine now that I know the galaxy is…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Green,” Harry and Louis finished the sentence in unison. When Louis turned to look at him, he noticed Harry’s eyes were green too. Louis had always liked the colour red, but as he smiled at Harry, he thought green might be slowly becoming his new favourite colour. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, Niall, Maz paid me anyways,” Harry remembered, scratching his neck. “Do you think it’s gonna be enough to get back and recover The Thunderbolt?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall laughed out loud and shook his head violently. “There’s no way I’m going back to find that piece of shit! I was thinking of keeping this one, a new generation of Thunderbolt,” he told them, nodding at the stolen ship. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn looked very confused. “But what about all the things you said about it being in your family for f–?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Five generations, yeah.” Niall finished the sentence “That ship was older than Maz Katana, there was no way to fix that old crap, not even with all the credits in the galaxy.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As they came closer to Niall's new ship, Louis heard Liam call him as he ran to them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Liam, what did your parents say?” he asked excitedly. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They said, since you don’t have to get back to Tatooine and I’m here with you, that I should stay around and keep an eye on you,” Liam nodded in a smile, but Louis didn’t buy it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Did they really say that?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m paraphrasing, it was something along the lines of </span>
  <em>
    <span>DON’T YOU EVEN DARE SHOW UP HERE and send Louis lots of kisses,</span>
  </em>
  <span>” Liam pulled off his mum’s impression, making the group laugh. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait, so you two have nowhere to go?” Niall asked, pointing at Liam and Louis.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, I guess not,” Louis scratched his head. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, the new Thunder is–“</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, I like that name more than The Thunderbolt,” Zayn interrupted Niall. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>The New Thunder,</span>
  </em>
  <span>” he repeated, and Louis nodded in agreement. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall sighed and went on talking, unable to stop smiling. “The New </span>
  <em>
    <span>Thunder</span>
  </em>
  <span> is bigger than The Thunderbolt, and I’ll need more people for the crew.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you gonna need a copilot?” Zayn asked, trying to sound cool and uninterested. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I already counted you in,” Niall winked at Zayn, before turning towards Liam and Louis. “What about you two?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis didn’t need to think twice. “What do you say, Rebel?” he asked in a playful tone to his best friend. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sure, count us in!” Liam agreed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall turned around to the fifth member. “Harry?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry stared back at them, and his eyes locked on Louis’. The boy could see it now, how deep underneath, Harry was just a lonely, sweet, broken kid. Louis wanted to beg “stay with us, stay with </span>
  <em>
    <span>me</span>
  </em>
  <span>”, but he knew it would’ve been silly, so he only stared deep into his green eyes, hoping Harry’s pride stood out of the way and he said yes. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Bounty hunters work alone,” Harry told them, breaking his gaze away from Louis. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, I guess,” Niall said, sounding unconvinced.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Farewell, boys…” Harry waved at them, and he hesitated for a second before looking into Louis’ eyes for the last time. “May the force be with you”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As Harry walked away from them, Louis had a brilliant idea. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait!” he shouted at Harry, making him turn around. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The Desert Oath,” Louis told him. Harry looked at him in confusion, as did Niall and Zayn. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What about it?” Harry asked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You and me took the Desert Oath. You can’t leave me,” Louis explained. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry smirked, looking confused yet entertained “What?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis nodded. “You promised to protect me, you can’t break the oath or you’ll be crushed to death by the Hutt.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry laughed and rolled his eyes dramatically. “Works for me,” he said and ran back to Zayn, Niall, Liam and Louis. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn smirked and nodded at Louis, who was surprised at how smooth that had been. Niall, on the other hand, was very confused. “Is that oath a real thing?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam smiled and put his arm around the clueless pilot’s shoulders. “We made it up as kids, but Harry doesn't have to know that,” he whispered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As the five of them walked into the ship, Louis turned around to admire Takodana for one last time. He sighed and pulled his hand in his pocket, where he found the lightsaber, cold and powerful in his hand, giving him hope and reminding him of his mum. The fresh wind ruffling his hair felt like a kiss on his cheeks, and Louis knew it was one last goodbye from his mother as he joined his new family on board the New Thunder, towards a new future. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. the temple of ashes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>this is part 2! hope you like it! and I'm sorry in advance :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>1: the wanted</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn took a shot of fireball whiskey and settled down on his chair as he took a look around the crowded bar. A few tables away, Harry was pretending to be sound asleep, but Zayn knew he was doing the same thing as he was: spying on people. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>At the other side of the bar, Niall was scamming people helped by Louis’ Jedi powers, which they’d soon found out were a great tool to cheat on games. Niall looked charming, enchanting everyone with his “abilities” to play darts. The pilot had insisted this counted as Jedi training for Louis, and that he was helping the young boy master his powers. Besides, the money paid for their bills, so Zayn couldn’t really complain, and right now it was the only income they could get. Work was tight and they had many expenses to pay for. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sitting across Niall were Liam and Louis, drinking fireball whiskey as well and doing their part, pretending not to know the pilot. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They were an amazing team, all five of them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn was about to get up and join them when he found a familiar gaze staring back at him from across the bar. The man got up from his table and slowly walked up to him, squeezing his eyes, trying to figure out if he was indeed Zayn. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When he got closer, Zayn cursed under his breath.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Look who’s here, it’s Zaynie,” Simon Cowell exclaimed in a smirk as he sat down at the table, uninvited. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn only took a deep breath and faked a smile. “Only my mummy calls me Zaynie, it’s Mr. Malik for you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The old man laughed. “You haven’t changed a bit, youngling.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I got more handsome, if that was even possible,” Zayn teased. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And richer than ever, I’ve heard,” Simon murmured, staring into Zayn’s hazel eyes. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The smuggler was taken by surprise, but one thing he had learned in all his years of work was to never show his emotions, especially to Simon. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span> “How do you know about that?” Zayn asked, trying to sound unamused. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Simon looked around the place before leaning forward and whispering: “I’m coming here as an old friend, almost as a father, Zayn, to warn you. The rumours about you are spreading quickly.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn’s jaw clenched. “What rumours?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“People know you have a lightsaber, Zayn,” Simon lowered his voice even more. “Luke Skywalker’s.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Oh, fuck.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn swallowed. “Skywalker is a myth,” he lied.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You didn’t say that when you were a kid,” Simon smirked, and Zayn knew he was already cornered:. Simon wanted the lightsaber, and Simon always got what he wanted. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn bit his lip, trying to figure out what to do. He could run away now, he had Liam, Niall and Harry to help him escape, and Louis’ powers had come in handy to get away from people before. But maybe being helped by a Jedi was not exactly what he needed right now. He could also tell Simon the truth, which was that he didn’t have Luke’s lightsaber anymore, but they had Louis’, and Simon wouldn’t know the difference between them. In the black market, they were all worth the same thing: his life. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn took a look around him, making sure no one was listening. This really wasn’t the ideal place to have this conversation.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The First Order has placed a reward on your head, they want you</span>
  <em>
    <span> and </span>
  </em>
  <span>the lightsaber, you are not safe,” Simon warned him further. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn rolled his eyes. “I never was” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Simon seemed to be losing his patience, and that was exactly what Zayn wanted. “This is serious, Zayn, I’m not playing.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And what do </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> get in exchange?” Zayn questioned back, raising his eyebrows. “I know you’re not warning me out of fatherly love.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The sad look on Simon’s face looked really fake and stupid, Zayn thought. He wasn’t a kid anymore, he couldn’t be fooled by Simon’s games anymore. “It hurts me that you think about me this way, Zayn,” Simon lied. “I raised you in the smuggler world.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You exploited me and threw me away when I became useless,” Zayn spat without thinking, trying his best to keep it cool. “But now, I must be worth something.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>A lightsaber, to be precise. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Simon clenched his glass of fireball whiskey. “That lightsaber has begun and ended wars long before you were born, child. And it will start a new one soon. It’s not safe to leave the future of the New Republic and the peace of all the galaxy…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“In my hands?” Zayn interrupted “Well, bad luck because it is.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Zayn...” Simon sighed as his endurance started to wear off. He’d never had the virtue of patience.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Simon...” Zayn copied him, smirking. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll pay twice the price of the black market.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn couldn't help but laugh. Either Simon’s lies had got worse as he grew older, or Zayn had improved at knowing when he was being scammed. “There’s no way you have that much money.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Simon shook his head. “Other people are risking it all to get you to the First Order for much less, and you know I always paid what I promised.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn sighed. This wasn’t a lie, he thought. Simon always paid what he owed him, but the real cost was always much higher and hidden away. He shook his head. “I can’t do it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why not?” Simon demanded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s not safe to leave the peace of the entire galaxy in</span>
  <em>
    <span> your</span>
  </em>
  <span> hands.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Simon groaned, making his teeth squeak. Zayn couldn’t hold out his smile. He took his eyes away from Simon and noticed Niall staring back at him, looking concerned. Harry had moved to Louis and Liam’s table at some point during his conversation, and they all were watching Simon.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And besides, it’s not only me who’s carrying the future of whatever,” Zayn went on saying, before taking his eyes away from the boys. But Cowell was fast, and he turned around in time to take a good look at Niall, Harry, Liam and Louis.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I see, you’ve got a crew.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn swallowed. “It’s a team.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Simon turned around to look back at him, smirking like an idiot. “Fit boys, do they take turns to fuck you or...?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is this conversation over?” Zayn rolled his eyes. He didn’t care if Simon took advantage of him, but he would never ever let him get close to any of them.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The old man sighed. “If you don’t want to negotiate the lightsaber, it’s okay, I understand … But I might have a job for you and your boyfriends here.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn shook his head. “I don’t work for you anymore”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m getting older, boy. I would do it myself if I could,” Simon told him, scratching his temple. Zayn noticed how his skin was wrinklier than ever, and a good chunk of his hair was grey. He was getting old indeed. And after all, he was already old when he’d taken Zayn away from home, and had taught him how to steal. It made Zayn really happy to know Simon was closer to death than ever before.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How much?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“15 thousand credits,” Simon told him, and Zayn shook his head. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Like I said, I’m not alon-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Each,” Simon interrupted. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Well, that changes everything.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>✨🪐🚀💫</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Man, I don’t know about you, but this is how horror stories begin,” Niall pointed out.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry looked inside the frozen cave with skepticism. “Are you sure it’s… here?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn exhaled and rubbed his hands against each other, trying to keep himself warm. “Simon’s coordinates said it's here.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m freezing my balls,” Louis exclaimed loudly in a shiver as they all walked down The New Thunder to the entrance of the cave. This was the first time Louis and Liam saw snow, but unlike the rain, they didn’t seem to be enjoying it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Let’s do this quick, then,” Zayn told them. He sighed, grabbed his flashlight and began walking into the frozen cave. He knew he had to go in first, or else no one would follow.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He had thought it would be warmer inside the cave, but somehow it felt even colder than outside in the snow. Hoth was a desertic frozen planet in the outer rim of the galaxy, and for miles and miles there was nothing but snow, rocks and ice.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What are we looking for?” Liam asked Zayn. Surprisingly, none of them had chickened out and returned to the ship. Yet. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A Jedi holocron,” Zayn answered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Bless you,” Niall mocked him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn ignored him and went on explaining to Liam: “It’s a Jedi artefact, they used them to hide important information and valuable items, and only another Jedi could open it. They're worth quite a deal.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam nodded. He was trying to pay attention, but Zayn knew he was having a rough time with the cold. “And what do they look like?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Like a box or something. I don’t really know, but it can’t be hard to find in here.” Zayn took a look around the cave. So far, all he could see was ice and darkness, but no holocrons.</span>
  <span> “</span>
  <span>Maybe look for a stone altar or something like that, it shouldn’t be hidden away.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They walked deeper into the cave, and Zayn noticed how every once in a while, Niall was glancing back at the entrance, as they went further and further and the light didn’t reach them. Niall was also walking very close to him, and their hands grazed each other once in a while. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam was actively searching for the holocron, looking behind every stone and every corner, and Zayn was surprised by his smuggler skills. But then, he realised Liam was probably so invested in finding the damn thing just to get out of Hoth as soon as they could. A little further away, Harry and Louis were also walking around together, but neither of them seemed as eager to find the holocron as he was.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The cave was 40 feet tall of pure darkness and ice, and the wind made weird noises as it travelled across the tunnels, howling like a wolf in the night. Zayn was a well experienced smuggler, and Simon had made him go to much scarier places than this in the past, but for someone with little experience, like the rest of the boys, he assumed the cave was scary as fuck. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>If he was being honest, Zayn also thought it was scary as fuck, but he couldn’t say that to them.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>None of them dared to talk, so Harry’s deep voice breaking the silence sounded louder than usual when he asked: “Lou?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The smuggler turned around and found Louis staring at one of the stone walls of the cave with a frown. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hold on a second,” Louis murmured, his eyes still fixed on the wall as he took out his lightsaber. The bright green light illuminated every little corner of the cave, making the ice spark in weird colours. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ever since he got that, he hasn’t been able to use a flashlight like a normal person,” Liam grumbled as he walked up to Harry and Louis, followed by Zayn and Niall. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When he got closer, Zayn noticed what Louis was looking at: all the stone walls were carved with runes in a foreign language he had never encountered before. Louis seemed very intrigued with them, and kept on looking back and forth between his lightsaber and the wall across him. Zayn approached him from the right to take a closer look. The runes on the walls, whatever they were supposed to be, were the same ones that were engraved on Louis’ lightsaber. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do they say?” Zayn asked him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis looked frustrated, as if he was trying to remember something. “I– I don’t know,” he stuttered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“These are coordinates” Niall pointed out, making everyone(s heads turn to him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How do you know?” Harry questioned. None of them had any idea what language this was, but Niall seemed  confident about knowing they were coordinates. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall rolled his eyes and pointed at the wall. “Look at the patterns and the numbers. It’s a location, but I can’t figure it out”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Zayn took a closer look, he saw that, at the bottom of the wall, the runes had the same pattern as maps used by spacecrafts. The only problem was, they still didn’t know what they said. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis kneeled down quietly, the lightsaber in his hand casting a green shadow upon his blue eyes. Zayn saw him hesitate for a second before looking up to Niall. “Is it crazy if I tell you I know where they are headed?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you even know what language it is?” Harry asked, shaking his head. Zayn turned around to take a look at Liam, who was very quiet. He seemed confused like the rest of them, but definitely not surprised. After all, this was Louis they were talking about, and if anyone knew a secret language written on the walls of a cave on a desertic planet, that would be him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, I’m not– I’m not reading the coordinates, it’s…” Louis stuttered. “I </span>
  <em>
    <span>know</span>
  </em>
  <span> where they are headed.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn shivered, but not from the cold. Deep into the cave, the howling wind stopped all of the sudden, and apart from the green light of the lightsaber, the rest of the cave was in deep, deep darkness.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This place feels odd,” Liam murmured, taking a look around, but neither Niall, Louis or Harry heard him. Zayn nodded in agreement. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>By the corner of his eye, Zayn saw a sudden movement in the darkness, and at the same time, Liam exclaimed: “Zayn, watch out!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The smuggler tripped and fell down as he avoided whatever was coming his way, pushing Niall down in the process, creating a domino effect and knocking  all of them down to the floor.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shit!” Harry cried.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What happened?” Louis asked in confusion, since none of them had realised there was... </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A WAMPA!” Niall shouted as the beast pounced over them from the darkness, but Liam had already taken his blaster out and was shooting at the monster as they all detangled from each other and crawled away in screams. Giving Liam his own blaster was probably the smartest thing Zayn had ever done.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The Wampa growled and swung its claw once more, almost tearing apart Zayn’s leg, but Louis managed to swish his lightsaber just in time and slash it across the monster’s arm. The beast growled and shouted in pain, giving them time to get up and run as quickly as they could. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall grabbed Zayn by the neck of his coat and dragged him up, and soon they were following Liam, Harry and Louis back to the ship. They had to pay attention to where they were running in order not to  trip and fall down on the rocks. The echoes in the cave made the roars of the beast sound louder and closer than they really were, and if Zayn didn’t know any better, he would’ve thought there was more than one Wampa inside the cave.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As they got closer to the entrance of the cave, there were less obstacles to dodge, meaning the Wampa could run faster and catch them there. Zayn looked around him, trying to figure out a way to escape. “Over here!” he cried to Liam, Harry and Louis, making them turn around and run into one of the tunnels. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The tunnels were narrow and slippery, connecting with each other like a maze. Zayn began turning  left and right, without a clue where he was heading to, but dragging Niall, Liam, Harry and Louis behind him, along with the monster. The Wampa followed them closely, and it had great eyesight in the dark, unlike them. Zayn was hoping to lose the beast, but he knew there was a high chance of all of them getting lost and trapped if they split up. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn took a sudden turn to the right, and Niall’s body clashed with his side, but they kept running. The tunnel was getting narrower, and Niall had to move from Zayn’s side and run behind him. They were all slim boys, and the ice was slippery, making them slide across the narrow tunnel. In that moment, the beast howled in anger, making the tunnel vibrate, but it sounded far away, and not as close as Zayn had feared. When he turned around, he noticed the Wampa was stuck in the narrow tunnel. It was too big and furry to be able to slide over the ice like them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn smiled, but they didn’t spend much time with the trapped beast, because sooner or later, the ice would melt. So they marched along the way, following a dim light coming from the end of the tunnel.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The echoes of the monster’s growling followed them back to the cave’s entrance, where The New Thunder was waiting for them. Zayn noticed he was holding Niall’s hand as they walked into their ship and headed to the cockpit, but he didn’t dare to let it go until The New Thunder was already flying away from the ice planet. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>2: the padawan </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Holy moly!” Niall said in a nervous laughter, catching his breath and breaking the silence in the ship. “That was... “ </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis heard the words “Awesome” and “Terrible” collide at the same time. None of those adjectives were correct, in his honest opinion. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn sighed. “This is the last time I trust Simon, it was a trap!” he exclaimed in a grumble from his copilot seat by Niall’s side.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Standing next to Louis, Harry rolled his eyes, infuriated. “Of course it was a trap, he was gonna rip Luke’s lightsaber from your cold dead hands!” he shouted at Zayn. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Or more like, he was gonna look inside that beast’s guts for it,” Liam joked, smirking at Louis. The rush of adrenaline made the boy blush, but Liam seemed more excited than scared about their near-death experience. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We don’t even have the lightsaber anymore, why didn’t you just explain that to Simon?” Niall asked, and all eyes focused on Zayn, who could only bite his lip nervously.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It builds reputation, I couldn't say I didn’t have it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn’s answer led to a choir of groans and complaints, mostly from Harry.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Your reputation almost cost us our lives!” Louis heard him shout in the back, but his mind was rushing back to the cave.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis walked up to Niall and stared at the map he had in the headboard of the cockpit. All the numbers and coordinates meant nothing to him, just like the runes in the cave hadn’t meant anything either, but he knew exactly where they had to go. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Here,” he told the pilot, pointing at the furthest dot on the map. “This is where we have to go.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall bit his lip as he looked up. “Louis… That’s the middle of nowhere, are you sure?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He wanted to be able to explain it, but just like he couldn’t put into words how his powers worked, he couldn’t make sense of how he knew they had to go there. Louis shook his head. “I know it’s here…. I– I can’t explain it but it’s... There’s like something calling me there,” he rambled as he tried to dissipate the fog in his mind. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The Force?” Zayn asked him, finishing off his bickering with Harry as Niall headed the ship to where Louis told him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis would’ve loved to say yes, but he knew that was incorrect. It wasn’t the universe or The Force telling him where to go, it was his heart.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And a vague, vague memory.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>✨🪐🚀💫</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It took them a while to reach wherever they were going, and Louis tried his best to distract himself from his own chaotic thoughts and the anxiety building up on his chest. Usually, he liked spending his time on the ship training with his lightsaber—although Louis was sure that Harry throwing random stuff in the air so he could destroy it wasn’t real Jedi training, but none of them were Jedis in the first place, they were just kids with a deadly weapon. But now, even taking a look at his lightsaber made Louis feel very dizzy for some reason. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He had to distract his mind somehow. Louis needed to run, he needed some fresh air in his lungs but there was nowhere to escape. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You alright?” a deep voice called him from the door of his bedroom, interrupting Louis’ thinking. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis sighed as he stared into Harry’s green eyes. “I’m good,” he lied. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tell that to your face then,” Harry told him seriously. His sense of humour was one of a kind, but Louis really enjoyed it, most of the time. Now, he was just too worried to mock Harry. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As Louis heavily sighed, Harry went on talking, sitting down across him on Liam’s bed. “Louis, we don’t have to go there if you don’t want to.” He sounded sincere and thoughtful, but Louis cut him straight off. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, but– I want to, I’m just…” Louis hesitated. The words clashed in his mind, and his heart rushed with multiple feelings at the same time. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry hesitated before asking: “Scared?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis sighed once more, feeling sick. He hated that word, but he knew it was the correct one. “I– I guess so”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry didn’t seem to grasp where Louis’ anxiety came from, but to be fair, Louis himself had no idea. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you even know this place? Have you been here before?” Harry questioned. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis didn’t even bother to try and reason with his mind to find an answer. “No, I’ve never left Tatooine until we met. It’s weird, I can’t explain it. I just know whatever it is, I have to be there,” he explained, and Harry only stared back, lost in his mind for a moment. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We took an oath, you and I,” he spoke again, breaking the painful silence building up in the room, and Louis immediately turned his head to look at him. </span>
  <em>
    <span>The fucking desert oath is just a kid’s game</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he thought, a silly game Liam and Louis came up with years ago when they became best friends, when they became brothers. Louis wasn’t sure Harry knew that, but if he did, he deliberately ignored it. For Harry, The Desert Oath meant something, and it was a promise he hadn’t broken yet. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry stood up from the bed, not taking his eyes away from Louis’. “It’s not too late to turn back–”“</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re here, Tommo!” Niall called Louis from the cockpit, interrupting Harry. Louis felt his heart speeding up. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Or maybe it </span>
  <em>
    <span>is</span>
  </em>
  <span> too late” Harry sighed in a sarcastic tone as Louis got up and walked to the cockpit, where Zayn, Niall and Liam were waiting for them, gazing out of the window and looking amazed by the view. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Louis looked out the window, he saw that the planet he had led them to was mostly made of a vast deep blue ocean, covered in grey storm clouds and fog, with nowhere to land on. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As they flew across the ocean, Louis noticed an island of thick dense rainforest where big ruins stood between the trees, rising above the water and the fog. “Over there,” he indicated, trying not to choke on the weird sensation crawling up his throat.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall swiftly landed the New Thunder on the ground and they walked out of the ship quietly. The grey landscape made Louis shiver, and for a brief moment, he thought this place was even colder than Hoth. By the looks on their faces, the rest of the boys were thinking the same thing too. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They had landed on a circular stone floor near the shore, in front of a line of tall stone pillars marking the way of a stone path, leading to ruins surrounded by fog and plants growing between the ashes and the sand. Louis took a closer look at the pillars and took out his lightsaber, as he noticed that they had the same runes that were carved on his weapon and in the cave in Hoth. The stones were deteriorated by the salt wind, but they were also carved by the fire, and Louis could see the flames flickering in his eyes, like ghosts guarding an entrance. The green lighting from his lightsaber shining across the fog was scary yet captivating and intriguing, somehow looking even brighter than ever, more powerful and dangerous. Louis was having d</span>
  <span>éjà vu.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This feels like a dream,” Louis said in a whisper as he put his lightsaber away and walked down the pathway, followed closely by the group.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry chuckled. “A nightmare more like,” but none of them laughed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When they reached the building, Louis saw how deteriorated it was. There were wild plants growing all over the destroyed stone structure. All the rocks and  ruins were stained with thick black ash, making the runes carved in the walls stand out even more. The air smelled like salt and fire. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I feel like I’ve been here before, in dreams,” Louis pointed out, more to himself than to anyone else. All the bells were ringing in his mind, but he felt like he was deaf. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Louis…” Liam cleared his throat and turned to look at him. “Do you think maybe this has something to do with… your mum?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis trembled. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?” Zayn asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam tried to explain his thoughts as best as he could. “Look at the runes, they’re the same ones as those in the cave and on Louis’ lightsaber”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn tried to say something else, but he was interrupted by Niall, who suddenly stepped back in fear, looking down to where his feet were a second ago. There was something hidden beneath  a pile of ashes., </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry moved closer to see what happened, and brushed the ash with his feet to uncover what was underneath. “Oh no, shit,” he choked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A pile of bones, worn off by the time and the weather, was lying under the ashes. Louis immediately turned his head away before he could figure out if the bones belonged to an alien, or a human being.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A sudden feeling of sadness weighed on Louis’ chest and drowned his eyes, making him unable to see, unable to breathe. His mind was not in the present, but travelling deep into the past as the fog in his mind slowly drifted away and memories resurfaced. It was all still confusing and vague, but now the memories came along with feelings, deep feelings rooted in his heart, making him ache like never before.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As his breath shortened, a name came to his mind like a thunder, striking him out of nowhere. Louis tried to talk, but his lungs were suddenly filled with ashes and anxiety.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Lou, are you alright?” Harry whispered, sounding concerned and taking Louis by surprise. For a moment, he had forgotten he wasn’t alone in...</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Eroda,” Louis managed to say in a choked murmur.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?” Harry asked, and Louis turned to look at his friends, noticing how pale their faces looked, sweat dripping from their foreheads. The cold that they’d felt at first was now heat coming from the stones, ghosts of fire making them perspirant.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This is Eroda, I–” Louis tried to explain, but he hesitated for a moment before continuing. He was afraid, like he had never been before. “Liam, I think you might be right.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As soon as he finished that sentence, Louis suddenly felt the strongest, most painful headache of his life. The memories from his past were all trying to invade his mind again, hurting him. None of them made sense, none of them showed him anything he could understand. He heard laughing, and he could hear the ocean closer than it really was. He remembered the night sky, he remembered tight arms hugging him. He saw the light of his lightsaber sparkling in a pair of blue eyes like his own. He could feel the sunshine that once shone across this temple caressing his cheeks, and he could also feel fire creeping on his arms, the fire that burnt down Eroda, along with his life and his memories. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The pain was unbearable, and Louis’ body dropped to the ground like a dead weight. His headache was killing him, he thought his skull was going to smash his brain. Louis heard the boys calling his name, and he felt Harry’s arms holding him tight, holding him together. He tried his best to breathe and focus on their voices, calming himself down, lifting the pain away. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As he came back to his senses, Louis noticed a ship flying above them and landing almost in front of the temple. He blinked, trying to focus his eyes. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fuck, the First Order, they found us,” Niall hissed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Above his head, Louis heard Harry snort. “Here goes your reputation now, Zayn. What are we gonna do?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Coming down from the ship, a group of 20 stormtroopers marched down quickly towards them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Something inside Louis flinched in horror and fear, but mostly, in pure rage. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He seemed to have gained back access to his mind. He quickly stood up, and in a swift movement, he took his lightsaber out, splashing the burnt temple with a vibrant green light, shining in the fog, lighting up the ashes. His hands were sweating, but he never lost the grip of his lightsaber. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis swallowed dryly before answering Harry’s question. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We fight.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>3: the brother</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Harry didn’t have time to roll his eyes at Louis’ comment, because the troopers were already shooting at them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The group split in different directions and hid away between the ruins of the temple. Harry took out his blaster and hid behind a tall stone pillar, followed by Zayn, who walked to the pillar in front of his. Niall and Liam followed Louis to the ruins of the temple, where they began shooting at the stormtroopers. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry had always been quick and good in fights, but he was also usually alone, with no one to worry about besides himself. Now, his mind was too distracted with paying attention to the rest of the boys to properly focus on the battle. He dodged a blast by pure luck, before hiding behind the pillar, staining his clothes with black ashes. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry noticed that a couple of stormtroopers were able to blast Zayn’s and Liam’s weapons out of their hands, leaving them empty-handed. It wasn’t much of an inconvenience for Liam, who started to punch the troopers like they were made of paper. Zayn, on the other hand, needed help, so Harry rushed to cover him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ve got to go, they’re looking for you!” Harry managed to shout at Zayn, as he blasted out a trooper. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t think they care that much about me anymore,” Zayn told him, and when he saw Harry’s confused look, he nodded back to the temple where all the stormtroopers were heading to. Standing on top of a rock, Louis was fighting all the stormtroopers single handed, using only his lightsaber. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Niall was a good trainer after all,” Zayn sighed, as they witnessed how effortlessly Louis wielded the lightsaber, but Harry knew that Louis was actually struggling, he could see it in the way his legs shook, and how his eyes sparked in fear. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’ve got to help him,” Harry shouted, and he threw himself onto the battlefield without any plans, only with his blaster in his hand and his heart in his throat. When the rest of the group saw Harry, they also launched themselves into the fight, firing at the stormtroopers from behind. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The group of stormtroopers was caught off guard, and chaos emerged in the ruins of the temple. But the troopers didn’t waste time on Harry or the rest, they were only interested in taking the lightsaber. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>On Harry’s right, Zayn and Niall were blasting as many troopers as they could, meanwhile Liam caught a blaster from one of the fallen troopers, but instead of fighting, he began running towards the temple. When he looked up, Harry saw where Liam was headed to: Louis was getting cornered  against one of the burned walls of the temple. Harry knew Liam wasn't going to make it on time, they were almost on top of Louis. Without hesitation, Harry whistled at the Jedi and extended his hand in the air. Louis’ eyes were full of panic. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Remember The Desert Oath!” Harry shouted at him, reminding Louis of his promise to reassure him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The rest of the boys heard it, and quickly realised what Harry’s plan was. Niall took a blaster from one of the fallen troopers and threw it at Louis. As he caught it, Louis turned back to look at Harry…</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And threw his lightsaber towards him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry ran and climbed a rock, where he caught the lightsaber in the air. It felt heavy in his hand, but he couldn’t pay attention to much else, because he landed on one knee and quickly stood up, running away in the opposite direction, followed by a bunch of troopers. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>On his left, Harry saw Liam running back towards him and threw the lightsaber at him, the boy catching it seamlessly. Now, the troopers were following Liam, until he threw the weapon to Zayn, then Niall, then Louis, and so on. Their game of catch was working on confusing the troopers, making them run around the temple, following the lightsaber as the boys threw it to one another. And while one of them was busy running around, the others had time to blast the rest of the troopers down. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A loud noise came down from the sky as a second ship landed next to the temple, from where a new hoard of stormtroopers marched down, ready to fight. Now that they were clearly at a disadvantage, fighting got harder, and the game of catch became more difficult. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry took his eyes away from the battlefield for a second, trying to find Louis and making sure he was okay, when he noticed a black cape waving majestically, coming down from the second ship. Before Harry could take a closer look at who it belonged to, he heard Zayn shout his name in desperation. He was running away with the lightsaber in his hand, as a group of troopers chased him down, shooting mercilessly, and Harry was the closest. Zayn tossed the lightsaber as he fell to the ground, and Harry saw it fly across the air for what felt like an eternity. He ran as quickly as he could, but he was too far away to catch it. Instead, a stormtrooper did.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The trooper stopped for a second to take a look at the lightsaber, but as soon as they noticed Harry running towards them, they immediately began running back to the ship. Harry felt his forehead dripping in sweat as he heard the chaos of the fight around him, sensing that they were losing. He couldn’t let them get away with it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Despite the heavy armour, the stormtrooper was fast and they were a foot ahead of Harry. As they got closer to the ship, Harry began to get desperate. He needed help, but the rest of the boys were busy fighting with a clear disadvantage. Harry took a look around him, trying to find a solution, and noticed that there was a pathway of rocks alongside him. He climbed them quickly and continued chasing the trooper, and when he was close enough, he took a deep breath and threw himself to the ground, landing right on top of the stormtrooper and knocking them down. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They both rolled down, and Harry heard the white armour snap and crack as they hit the rocky ground. When they stopped rolling, Harry held the trooper down with his body and took a look at their hand, but there was no lightsaber anywhere. Harry looked up in desperation and, instead of finding the weapon, he saw a group of 5 stormtroopers coming his way, ready to fight him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey!” Niall’s thick accent cried behind Harry, and when he turned around, he saw him standing above the rock pathway, calling the stormtrooper’s attention. “You want the lightsaber? Come and take it!” he exclaimed, grabbing his balls with his hands and running away in the opposite direction.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As the group of troopers ran towards Niall, Harry didn’t notice how his captive took advantage of the situation, turning around and pinning Harry to the ground. The stormtrooper wasn’t as heavy as they looked like, but they were strong, and they were holding Harry tightly to the floor as they raised their arm, ready to throw a punch.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And that’s when Harry looked at them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The stormtrooper’s helmet was smashed on the top left corner. There was a human underneath the suit, with fair white skin and curly brown hair falling down the helmet, waving in the salty air. They had a nasty cut on top of their eyebrow, but the red blood rushing down their face made the green of their eyes pop even more. For a second, Harry thought it was his own eye he was watching. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But it wasn’t his. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He remembered a laugh, carried away by the wind. Bright sunshine burning their skin. Her hand, which back then felt huge to Harry, holding him tight. Eyes, green eyes like his own, with long eyelashes, curving over a soft smile. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They were in the woods near their village, and she was blowing on a scrape Harry had got on his knee when he fell down a tree. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was running around with Niall, and he could see by the corner of his eye how her hair danced in the wind, floating. Harry had always wanted to have hair as long as his sister’s. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was a cold morning, she was teaching Harry how to blow steam from his mouth, and they laughed like it was the most magnificent thing they had ever seen. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was only darkness, and the violent howling of the wind outside their room. Harry was scared of the storm, but a pair of arms held him, rocking him back and forth in the bed, murmuring soft lullabies on his ear and keeping him safe. His sister always knew how to make him feel less scared. Their heartbeats were in sync, and Harry couldn’t help but close his eyes and fall asleep in her arms. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The next morning, his sister was already outside their house when Harry woke up. His mum told him she had gone to the woods to find any damages from the storm on her treehouse. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And that was the last time someone had ever seen her. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The last time Harry saw her. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Until</span>
  <em>
    <span> now</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Harry felt like the world was in slow motion. As his mind snapped back to reality, he saw the stormtrooper raise their arm, ready to throw a punch. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Her</span>
  </em>
  <span> arm. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>His sister’s </span>
  </em>
  <span>arm. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As the punch fell upon his face, smacking his nose (which made a horrible cracking noise), the world went back to it’s normal pace. And it was hell. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Gem–“ Harry choked on her name, as the blood from his nose fell down to his throat, drowning him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Gemma, it’s me!” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Another punch. Harry heard screaming. By the corner of his eye, he saw a red light shining in the fog, but not a green lightsaber anywhere. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Gemma, I’m Harry.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Another punch. Harry’s nose was soft as butter, and it dripped blood alarmingly fast. He noticed the screams were Zayn’s. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“GEMMA!” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He shouted once more, but his voice drowned with the shouting. This time, it was Louis who was screaming. Harry trembled. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m Har–“ </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He couldn’t see straight anymore. As his eyes sunk into a foggy emptiness, Harry could only notice how green and pretty Gemma’s eyes were, and he wondered if they actually were even greener than what he remembered. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He thought his sister was going to throw another punch, but instead she stood up and left Harry on the ground, bleeding out to his death. He tilted his head to the side, making the blood drip to the floor instead of his mouth, and saw the figure of Gemma, all suited in white, running away with the remaining stormtroopers back to the ship. They were followed by the black cape figure, the red light… </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And Niall and Louis’ bodies. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>4: The innocent</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Niall was woken up by soft, desperate whispers coming from somewhere in the darkness. For a brief moment, he thought he was back being a little boy, and his mum was waking him up in the morning to go and play in the woods with Harry, the last 15 years of his life just a dream, a beautiful and twisted dream. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But the unbearable pain in his body was what reminded him that this wasn’t a dream, and it finally brought him back into his senses. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Niall,” he heard someone call him, but this time he noticed it wasn’t his mum, but a male voice that sounded worried, but mostly annoyed. That was the tone everyone always used to call his name, though, so that wasn’t an indication of anything. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall groaned. His throat was as dry as Tatooine and his skin was sticky with his own blood. His wounds were open and had stopped bleeding, but they burned and made Niall shiver in pain. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Niall, wake up,” he heard, this time more clearly. It was Louis. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Louis? </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Oh, fuck. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wh-what?” Niall stuttered. He didn’t remember much of the fighting, only snaps here and there. Blood and fog, not much else. He tried to move, but his wrists and ankles were chained to a wall. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you alright?” Louis asked as Niall managed to lift up his head and open his eyes. They were in a dim cell. Louis was also captured in the same position, tied to the opposite wall. He didn’t seem as physically wounded as Niall was, but the pilot knew Louis was mentally exhausted from the fight. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall remembered a little more. Louis fighting with his lightsaber. Liam calling his name. Harry bleeding on the floor. Zayn rushing towards him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Louis?” Niall called him, just to make sure this really wasn’t just a sick nightmare, and he was going to wake up any second now, lying next to Zayn on his ship or on the floor of a cantina, drunk as a skunk. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, it’s me,” Louis told him, confirming all of Niall’s nightmares. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall spat the semi-dry blood sitting in his mouth to the floor. “Zayn fucking owes me so much.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why the fuck did you do that?” Louis asked in shock. Now Niall’s mind was clearer. When Harry had tackled the trooper down and the lightsaber had rolled to the floor, Niall had seen Zayn pick it up. He’d had to act fast, so he’d distracted the stormtroopers, pretending to have the lightsaber with him, so that Zayn could hide it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall looked around. The cell was closed and there were no stormtroopers inside, but he knew they were being watched for sure. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can’t fake Jedi powers, but I can fake being Zayn,” Niall replied, shaking his head as a shiver crossed his body, but Louis didn’t notice. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This is insane!” his friend exclaimed, confused by the whole situation, and completely clueless as to the danger they were in right now. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall attempted to move into his handcuffs. “Meh, I’ve had worse,” he joked, like he always did when he tried to stay calm and not freak out. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What are we gonna do?” Louis asked Niall, staring into his eyes. Louis was relying on him to get out of there, Niall being more experienced in the arts of running away from bad guys. But the truth was that Niall was too terrified to think properly. Saving Zayn from being captured had been completely out of the blue, and he hadn’t even needed to think about it to just do it. Now, with his mind cold and his adrenaline from the fight slowing down, Niall’s fears came back to haunt him and paralyse him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>If they had any chance to get away from the First Order, it was all on Louis, Niall thought, since he was the one with Jedi powers. But Louis wasn’t a Jedi, Louis was a kid just like him, scared and defenceless. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As Niall was about to speak again, a door across the room opened, and flashes of red lights covered the cell, carving into Louis’ deep cheekbones, and making Niall’s scars glow. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Five stormtroopers walked in, moving aside to give way to Kylo Ren.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall saw him closely for the first time. Back in the battlefield, he was just a black shadow, wielding a bright red lightsaber so fast it was almost invisible. But now that he was moving slower, Niall noticed he was tall, much taller than they were. His black helmet shone, reflecting the red light coming from the outside of the cell. His cape and armour looked impeccable, and there were no visible wounds from the fight, although Niall knew Louis had kicked his ass back there. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The man walked into the room and, instead of heading towards Louis, he walked up to Niall. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Smuggler, you’re up,” he talked, the helmet distorting his real voice, making it deeper and almost robotic. If he didn’t know any better, Niall would’ve thought he was a droid. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall smirked when he heard “smuggler” instead of “pilot”. He had saved Zayn. He couldn’t save Louis, but he’d saved Zayn, and he had to focus on that to keep going. “Good morning to you, gorgeous.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How did you find Eroda?” Kylo Ren asked, avoiding any sort of teasing Niall tried to pull off. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall snorted. “You know, we were taking a Sunday walk around the middle of nowhere and we stumbled upon a beautiful burned graveyard and we decided it was a nice place to have a picnic.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>To Niall’s surprise, he heard something like a laugh come from Kylo Ren, but it was completely distorted and almost inaudible. Niall doubted this dude even knew how to laugh. “You’re very funny, aren’t you, Horan?” Kylo Ren remarked, and Niall’s blood froze in his veins. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was unable to hide his surprise, and before he could regain his composure, Kylo Ren spoke again. “You didn’t think we’d realise you’re not the smuggler?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall tried his best not to seem  nervous, his plan might still work. “In my defence… you’re a bunch of idiots, I had to try.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kylo Ren walked closer to him. He was in fact so close that Niall could see his own face reflected on the helmet’s surface. He looked like shit. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where is the lightsaber?” the man asked once more, clearly losing his patience. Niall knew he couldn’t give up now. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh man, come on, don’t torture me like this,” Niall smirked and looked down to his pants. “I can’t make the same joke twice-“</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He didn’t have time to finish his sentence properly before a heavy fist fell upon his face, making him look sideways. For a hot second, Niall saw nothing but blackness. The punch didn’t manage to quite knock him out, but it was a close one. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey! Leave him alone!” he heard Louis scream from the other side of the room. Kylo Ren turned around and walked towards Louis, bending over to stare deep into his eyes. After a moment of silence, he said something that took Niall by surprise. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know those eyes.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis stood quiet, clearly in shock too, staring deeply into the empty eyes of the helmet, and Niall felt the tension grow between them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And who are you?” Kylo Ren breathed, but Louis refused to talk, maybe as a defence mechanism, or maybe because he was too scared to do it. Either way, Niall didn’t have a good feeling about this. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis’ silence seemed more incriminating to Kylo, who groaned before continuing to interrogate him. “You have The Force.” It wasn’t a question, it was a statement. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis clearly knew his silence was giving too much away. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I have no clue what you’re talking about,” he told Kylo Ren. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You tell me you haven’t heard of Jedi’s before? Only a Jedi knows how to wield a lightsaber like that,” Kylo Ren went on, leaning closer and closer to Louis. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m no Jedi, they are fairy tales,” Louis lied again. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kylo Ren laughed once more. “Tell me, is this not real?” he asked, raising his hand in the air. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Immediately after that, something in Niall’s throat clenched. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The sensation was the most horrible thing Niall had ever experienced, and he had lived through horrible situations in the past. The air was getting thinner and thinner in his throat as it shrinked down. It was almost as if someone was choking him but from the inside, as if their hand wasn’t on his neck, but in his throat, crushing down his windpipe. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was exasperating, knowing he was getting hurt, but being unable to see it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Stop it!” Niall heard Louis shout. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kylo Ren didn’t even flinch. “Only a Jedi knows the location of Eroda.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall could feel how the air was still getting thinner, and the oppressing pain was becoming unbearable. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“STOP HURTING HIM!” Louis screamed once more, now looking more scared and desperate. Niall was probably turning blue or purple. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Who are you, and where is Luke’s lightsaber?” Kylo Ren asked, but Niall had difficulty hearing it. His eyes were closing when Louis spat out.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s not Luke’s, it’s my mother’s!” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Just like magic, the grip on Niall’s throat loosened a little, and Niall was able to breathe again, coughing dryly. His throat was burning. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You are a padawan,” Niall heard Kylo Ren speak between his coughs. “Now I remember you.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall tried to look at Louis, but the boy’s gaze was stuck on Kylo Ren, who continued speaking.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Back then you were just a kid, one of the youngest in the Temple. Your mother was a scavenger when we found her, a poor innocent teenage girl with a newborn, so my uncle took you both in. What a saint,” he spoke in a sarcastic tone. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The temple?” Louis asked, confused “You mean E-“</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Eroda, where Luke Skywalker raised his own Jedi Temple to train a new generation of padawans,” Kylo Ren interrupted him. “Your mother was one of his apprentices, as was I.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall wanted to scream, attack, fight this motherfucker, but Louis seemed to be in a trance. Kylo Ren was whispering all those sweet words into Louis’ ear, bewitching him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You knew her?” Louis questioned Kylo. He sounded like a little kid. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I knew her. You both have the same eyes,” Kylo Ren mocked, making Niall’s blood boil, but Louis didn’t say anything. “She was a very good apprentice, for a no one, but not as good as someone with a bloodline almost as pure as mine,” Kylo bragged on, although Louis didn’t even seem to notice it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She was a Jedi,” Louis whispered, almost in disbelief. Niall knew Louis was completely in shock, as his memories were starting to make sense. Niall shook in fear. They had to get out of there. He couldn’t let Kylo fuck with Louis’ head. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You were still very young, but my uncle used to say there was a lot of talent hidden beneath, and no hint whatsoever of the dark side,” Kylo carried on with his speech as he walked closer and closer to Louis, breathing inches away from him. “Now I can see what he meant.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In that moment, Niall and Louis’ cuffs loosened at the same time. Niall fell down like a dead weight to the cold, hard ground. Then, everything happened too fast, too quickly. Kylo Ren took out his lightsaber and threw it to the ground as he spoke. “I should’ve killed you when you couldn’t defend yourself.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Just then, Niall stood up, ready to throw himself to Kylo and tackle him, but the stormtroopers guarding the door ran towards him. Two of them held him down, while the remainder began to punch him over his stomach, his face, everywhere.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I decided to spare your life, but now that I think about it, I should’ve killed you like I killed her,” Niall heard Kylo Ren say, now raising his voice louder so that he could be heard amongst the fighting. By the corner of his eye, Niall saw something that made him gasp.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“LOUIS, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” he shouted, as Louis kneeled to the ground, and slowly reached for Kylo’s lightsaber.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis sweated in pain. His movements were stiff and uncoordinated, as if someone was moving him around with a bunch of strings. He was clearly trying to fight it off. “It’s not me,” he stuttered, “it’s…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The Force,” Kylo Ren finished the sentence, turning around to look at Niall. The pilot knew that, underneath that mask, the man was smiling. “My side of the Force”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall fought back as much as he could, but the white soldiers were climbing on top of him and hitting him over, and over, and over again. Niall didn’t have time to take a break as another punch was thrown in his direction. The pain was unbearable, and the punches were opening the fresh wounds Niall already had from the fight. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Across the room, Louis was suffering a much slower torture. Niall could see how he was battling his own mind to stop it, but it wasn't enough. Kylo Ren was too powerful. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My uncle tried to kill me, one night. He knew I was corrupted by the dark side. But I was quicker than the old man. After I murdered everyone in the Temple, I noticed someone was missing,” Kylo continued with his speech, telling Louis the story of what had happened to his mother. Louis struggled, wanting to hear the story and find out the whole truth, while trying to stop himself from taking the lightsaber. “Your mother had managed to escape from Eroda with you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Another punch, this time on his side, made Niall cry and tremble in pain.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It wasn’t hard to find her. She was all alone on an uninhabited planet. No little boy in sight, just her,” the deep, robotic voice kept talking in a calm tone amongst the fighting.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall noticed that the clean white trooper’s uniforms were stained in fresh blood. </span>
  <em>
    <span>His</span>
  </em>
  <span> fresh blood. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She was unarmed, but the fool tried to stop me anyway.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis was gripping the lightsaber and slowly stretching up, moving his head up involuntarily towards Kylo Ren.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Her mind was weak, her love made her weak,” Kylo spoke, full of rage.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall’s body burned everywhere, but he didn’t stop fighting back. His sight was slowly clouding up, but he could see how Louis took the lightsaber and pressed it tightly to his own neck. With just one quick movement, the lightsaber would turn on, and go right through his throat. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She was easy to control, just like you…” Kylo Ren laughed, enjoying the moment. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis couldn't talk, and Niall saw that his eyes full of tears. He knew that the moment Louis died, they were going to kill him too. The troopers were just waiting for their master’s orders to give the final punch. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In that moment, Niall knew that he was their last hope to save their lives. Not with Jedi powers or big strength or his blaster, but with his lies.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“WE KNOW WHERE LUKE'S LIGHTSABER IS!” he shouted, making sure that Kylo Ren could hear him through the fighting. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Everything stopped all of the sudden, like they had paused a movie. Louis stood frozen on the ground, his grip on the lightsaber still strong, making his hand shake. The stormtroopers had stopped fighting too, and that’s when Niall noticed they were also being mind-controlled by Kylo Ren. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Nobody spoke for a second, and Niall couldn't help but hold his breath, expectant.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The stormtroopers dropped his body to the ground without warning, and he crashed down into a pool of his own blood and sweat. Kylo Ren grabbed his lightsaber back and took Louis by the collar of his robes, lifting him up in the air. The man turned around, and Niall saw his own reflection in the shiny, black helmet once more.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Niall…” Louis managed to cry his name in desperation, and the pilot quickly winked an eye to the boy before anyone else could see it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This isn’t a game, is it, pilot?” the robotic voice demanded. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niall took a moment to reply as a wave of burning pain took over him for a second. He spat out blood once more, and raised his head to stare deeply into the black helmet. “I swear on my life it’s not.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Your life is worthless to me,” Kylo spat out in rage.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I swear it on Luke’s, then,” Niall replied calmly, trying to catch his breath. Funnily enough, all the punches he had received didn't seem to hurt him as much as his throat did, and for a second Niall swore he could feel the ghostly hand gripping him by the neck, suffocating him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Just as if Kylo had read his thoughts—and maybe he really had—he turned on his lightsaber and slowly directed it towards his neck, lighting up Niall’s face in a red light, as well as the purple bruises already covering his neck. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s why we went to Eroda, to find the coordinates of where the lightsaber is hidden. That’s where our friends are headed to now. We can take you there and you can have the lightsabers,” Niall lied. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The easy part of the plan was done, now Niall only hoped Zayn would remember their deal.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>5: the rescuer </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The freezing wind howled violently in the tunnels of the cave, somehow colder than the first time they’d been in Hoth, but Liam didn’t care anymore. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you sure this is going to work?” he asked Zayn for what  felt like the 100</span>
  <span>th</span>
  <span> time., Zayn looked peaceful and unbothered. Liam knew he had to trust his and Niall’s bond, but it all sounded like madness to him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We did our part, now we have to wait for them,” the smuggler replied calmly as he rubbed his hands. Liam couldn’t help but be a little </span>
  <span>doubtful</span>
  <span>. He had a lot of respect for Niall and Zayn—this wasn’t their first battle together, and they had carried out many escape plans successfully in the past—but in reality, neither of them had ever faced something so dangerous. They all had a lot to lose. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This is crazy,” Liam sighed. “You and Niall must have some sort of telepathic connection.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, with their dicks,” Harry interrupted them, visibly in a bad mood. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The bounty hunter was kneeling down a little apart from Zayn and Liam, and since they had landed back in Hoth, he hadn’t said a word to them. He’d just sat down in their hideout and waited for the rest of the plan.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn turned around slowly to take a look at him. They made eye contact for a brief second, and Liam swore he could see fire between them, before Harry rolled his eyes. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“As if you don’t want Louis’ lightsaber, huh?” Zayn scoffed, but with a completely serious tone.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, and you know everything, don’t you?” Harry immediately replied in a slow and chill voice, despite his words being not chill whatsoever.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn raised an eyebrow and stood up. “What are you saying, Styles?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry didn’t bother to stand up or adress Zayn in any other way, but his lack of reaction was an attack in itself. Liam got up quickly and placed his arm across Zayn’s chest to stop him from coming near Harry. “Can you take this seriously?” he exclaimed, looking back and forth between them. “Niall and Louis might be dead, for all we know, and you’re wasting your time fighting”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn ground his teeth and didn’t take his gaze off Harry as he sat back down. Liam turned around to look at the bounty hunter: he was somehow even paler than normal (and Harry was pretty much a ghost on a daily basis) and his swollen nose pulsed slowly. The stains of blood on his shirt were still not completely dry, and he’d insisted on not changing his clothes. In fact, Harry seemed to clench on them tightly, almost hugging his shirt like he was scared to lose it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam was the one who’d run to help Harry when he’d spotted him almost dead on the ground. Liam had never seen so much blood in his life before, and more and more kept coming out of Harry, who could only murmur a name very softly, over and over again, as he was slipping out of consciousness. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Gemma.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As Kylo Ren and his stormtroopers were leaving with Louis and Niall, Liam had somehow managed to keep his cool, pick Harry up and rush him to The New Thunder to help him. The ship had a little nursery aid, small but well equipped, that could maintain a person alive long enough to reach for help, and over the past few weeks, Liam had taken really good interest in it, teaching himself how to use it in case of an emergency. And today had been the day. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His whole body was in throbbing pain and his mind was confused and desperate, but he couldn’t worry about Louis, Niall, Zayn or even in his own wounds as Harry was dying in his arms. He could not let another friend behind. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Despite it being cloudy and foggy in Eroda, Liam  had known that the sun was setting on the planet, as it got darker and darker as the seconds went by. The stone pillars drew funny figures in the dark as their shadows got longer. Liam was covered in blood (both his and others) and ashes, mixing together in a thick, warm paste. Not even the salty wind coming from the shore could clean him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When he’d managed to stop Harry’s bleeding, he’d heard his name being called out inside the ship. For a brief moment, Liam had sworn he could hear Louis’ voice, but the echoes were coming from Zayn, who’d run into the ship alive and in one piece.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam had rushed towards the smuggler and given him the tightest hug of his life. Both had stood there for a moment, quietly and slowly rocking back and forth as they held each other, feeling their heartbeats on each other’s chest. They were the only ones left. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Harry-” Zayn had choked on his own words, but Liam had stopped him before he could continue. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s here. Alive.” It had taken Liam a moment before he was able to ask: “Zayn, what are we going to do?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn had broken the hug to look into Liam’s eyes, smirking. “Niall and I always had a deal. If one of us gets captured, we agree to meet again in the last place we were together. We’re going to Hoth, with this,” he’d explained, taking out Louis’ lightsaber from his pocket. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As they were heading back to the frozen planet (now with Liam as the copilot and Zayn as the pilot), Harry had woken up and walked to the cockpit of the ship, and that’s where he’d told them about Gemma.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Harry, how can you be so sure it’s her?” Zayn suddenly asked, breaking the silence, and the echoes of his voice through the frozen cave brought Liam back to reality, back to Hoth.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry sighed as he stared into the darkness. “I know what I saw.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam knew that, in other circumstances, Zayn would’ve mocked Harry for being so dramatic, but no one was handling things well. Zayn was quiet about it, like he always was, but Liam could see that deep down, he was freaking out about Niall and Louis—especially about Niall. Liam was also really nervous about them, although he knew Louis could defend himself pretty well. Harry, on the other hand, seemed to have forgotten about Louis and Niall altogether, and his mind could only think of his sister.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We were in the middle of fighting, you probably got confused,” Zayn tried to point out, because he seemed quite unsure about Harry’s finding. “And besides, she kicked your ass.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well she’s four years older than me, that last part hasn’t changed since I last saw her,” Harry spat out. His voice could’ve cut through ice. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>None of them spoke for a while, and Liam felt relieved that Zayn didn’t say anything back. In the silence and the dark, the wind seemed to blow faster and colder and deeper into the tunnels of the cave, and Liam wondered where their friends could be now. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry raised up his head a little and hesitated for a second, but then he spoke. “How did you guys know I had a sister?” He stuttered a little at the end. Since he’d woken up, Harry hadn’t been able to say Gemma’s name out loud. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Before Harry had joined them in the cockpit, Liam had told Zayn what Harry was saying when he’d found him almost dead, and they both had remembered the conversation they’d had, alone in Q’dar. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>His sister was taken away as a kid. That’s why his father became a bounty hunter, to find her. Now it’s Harry’s turn, and he’s their last hope,”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Therefore, Harry didn’t have to explain much when he found the strength to explain what had happened to him in Eroda, since they were both already aware. Surprisingly, Harry hadn’t asked how they knew about his sister, even though he’d never told them directly. Instead, he’d remained silent until they’d reached the frozen planet. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Niall told me,” Zayn eventually replied to Harry’s question, but Liam didn’t want to explain how he knew, just so that Zayn would not get in more trouble with the bounty hunter.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I see!” Harry exclaimed, almost in a laugh—a madman laugh. “I guess the dick connection also works for gossiping.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>This time, both Zayn and Harry stood up, ready to fight each other. Liam would have never let any of his friends fight each other, although he was </span>
  <em>
    <span>so </span>
  </em>
  <span>exhausted, physically and mentally, that he contemplated not doing anything about it for a moment. Sadly for him, he was just too good of a guy.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Stop it, the both of you,” Liam pleaded, struggling as he held Zayn with his right arm and Harry with his left one. He raised his voice unintentionally as he said that. Liam never shouted, he was always the one trying to stop fights rather than add more screams to them, but his voice seemed to have a good effect on calming the two boys down. Zayn and Harry stopped moving, taken aback and in shock of Liam’s outburst. “You’re acting like children. Save that energy for when the stormtroopers show up, or do I have to remind you why we’re here?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zayn seemed ashamed by Liam’s words, but Harry didn’t care, or couldn’t care anymore. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The loud noises of a ship engine landing outside echoed in the tunnels of the cave, like an alarm calling them to action. Liam shook his head in disbelief, but once he saw the First Order ship at the entrance of the cave, he couldn't hide his surprise. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They’re here!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I told you, dick connection,” Zayn smirked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>From their hideout inside the frozen tunnel, Liam and the boys had a perfect view of the entrance of the cave. The stormtroopers marched down their ship in formation, followed by their leader whose steps echoed loudly throughout the cave. Harry tensed the moment he saw Kylo Ren, but Liam only shivered when he caught a first glance of Louis and Niall. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Escorted by a stormtrooper, they walked down the First Order ship with their heads held high and their hands chained. Louis didn’t seem to have any physical wounds, but he looked pale and tired, and Liam somehow knew that his wounds were probably all mental. Niall, on the other hand…</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shit,” Harry murmured when he saw his best friend walk behind Louis, dripping blood as he got out of the ship. Zayn didn’t say a word, but stared deeply into his lover’s figure, and Liam knew his heart was racing up. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That is your ship, pilot,” Liam heard Kylo speak, although they were standing a little too far from them, and the wind howling violently through the cave was too loud to hear them clearly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Mh, he’s clever, isn’t he?</span>
  </em>
  <span> Liam thought.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re so clever, wow,” Louis spoke at the same time, and the stormtrooper hit him with the sleeve of their arm. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“According to what we know, the lightsaber is hidden inside a Jedi holocron,” Liam heard Niall say loud and clear through the wind, almost as if he wanted everyone to hear, and the cohort of white soldiers moved into the cave, followed by Kylo, Louis and Niall.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Without wasting time, Liam got moving, following his friends through the tunnels, followed by Zayn and Harry. From the cracks and holes inside the frozen cave, Liam could see the shapes of Louis and Niall clearly, but Harry kept shifting his head from side to side, as if he was trying to find something else, someone else. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As they walked deeper into the cave, the light from the outside started to slowly fade away, and the tunnels became more slippery, covered in ice. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where are your friends, pilot?” Kylo Ren questioned, turning to take a look at Niall through his black helmet. They were not deep enough inside the cave, they needed to walk a little longer, but the stormtroopers and their leader had stopped walking, and didn’t look like they wanted to move. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam acted fast, without thinking. He ran a little bit further into the tunnel and shouted: “Zayn, over here, I think I’ve found it!” His voice echoed far into the cave, getting lost in the darkness, and it worked perfectly in making Kylo and his troopers turn on their flashlights and move deeper into the cave. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Soon, they were once again standing in front of the runes they had found the first time, shining into the carved stone like blood. The boys knew they had to act quickly before it was too late, knock the guards down, and take Louis and Niall with them back to the tunnels and escape before the stormtroopers could catch up with them. Liam turned around to look at Zayn, who nodded his head in agreement. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What is this, some sort of trap?” the stormtrooper guarding Louis and Niall asked, and Harry immediately tensed. It was Gemma. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kylo Ren only leaned further towards the stone wall, staring deeply into the runes. “Shut up, trooper, you’re distracting me!” he spat out violently. Liam could hear Harry’s heavy breathing.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>While Kylo was distracted with the runes, the rest of the stormtroopers started to walk around the cave, directing their flashlights into the deep holes of the tunnels. Liam and Zayn quickly hid out behind the frozen walls, but Harry wasn’t bothered, he only kept staring at Gemma. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Harry,” Zayn whispered, annoyed. “Fucking moron, you’re going to ruin the plan;”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But Harry didn’t pay attention to Zayn, and didn’t move out or attempt to hide himself. Zayn rolled his eyes and looked at Liam as he took Louis’ lightsaber from his bag and handed it to him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam knew there wasn’t time to discuss, so he took the weapon with his left arm and got ready to jump out of the tunnel. Through a crack in the stone wall, Liam had a perfect view of Louis, Niall and Gemma. Gemma seemed to have seen Harry hiding in the tunnel, and she was about to say something when a scream interrupted her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“WAMPA!” another trooper cut her off, and from there on, chaos emerged inside the cave. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam couldn't see where the monster was, but he could hear the stormtroopers scream in agony and terror as their flashlights flickered in the dark before disappearing. The cave was quickly plunged into darkness once more, and Liam took it as his chance to jump into action. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He took Louis by the wrist while Zayn held Niall, and Gemma grabbed Harry, punching him to the floor. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How do I make this work?!” Liam asked Louis in desperation, holding the lightsaber in his hands, but before his friend could reply, Liam somehow managed to turn it on. The familiar green light lit up the dark cave, and Liam saw the shadow of the Wampa across the rock walls. He cut Louis’ cuffs and when he turned around to help Niall, the pilot and Zayn were fighting Gemma, trying to get her off Harry. Gemma herself was trying to get Niall and Zayn off her. The scene was comical, but the roars of the beast reminded Liam that they had to run away, </span>
  <em>
    <span>now.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He handed back Louis his lightsaber and began running, taking Niall and Zayn by the collar of their robes, and Louis had stopped to help Harry, taking him with his free hand and heading behind Liam towards the tunnels, followed by Gemma.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They’re following us!” Louis informed the rest of the group, but Harry interrupted him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, Gemma is following us.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The look on Niall’s face was priceless, and Louis’ confusion was clear in his gaze, but there was no time for questions, when a roar echoed inside the tunnel and a red light emerged in the darkness, right in front of them. Kylo Ren’s cape was ripped apart, his helmet was broken in the top corner, and Liam could see his eye glowing in rage underneath the red light of his lightsaber.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Louis stepped forward with his own lightsaber tightly gripped in his hand. The only light inside the tunnel came from the red and green weapons, clashing in the dark. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam aimed to run the other way, but Gemma was standing there, pointing her blaster at Harry, who was trying to talk to her. They were trapped. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Somewhere inside the dark and the ice, the roar of the Wampa shook the stone walls, echoing in the tunnels. They had no idea where it could be. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You think you can fight me, padawan?” Kylo Ren smirked at Louis, slowly walking towards the group.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Gemma, put the weapon down, we can go home,” Liam heard Harry plead behind him, but Gemma didn’t care, and she stepped forward. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The group was cornered inside the tunnel, with no way out. While Harry tried to talk Gemma into her senses, Louis was starting to sweat. Liam noticed that his friend’s knees were shaking and he was heavily breathing, and Niall was also visibly nervous, still trapped in his handcuffs. They both were clearly aware of what Kylo Ren was capable of, and they were scared. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam stared back and forth between Louis, Harry, Gemma and Kylo, trying to find a way out. His gaze met with Zayn’s, his honey eyes shining in the red and green lighting. Liam looked down at Zayn’s belt, where his blaster and Niall’s were hanging. Liam had lost his own weapon back in Eroda, so he slowly reached for Niall’s down Zayn’s waist. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He didn’t act immediately, though, simply pulled the trigger and waited. Kylo and Gemma were getting closer and closer. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where is Luke’s lightsaber?” Kylo Ren spoke, clearly losing his patience. He was so close to them that Liam could see Louis’ face reflected on his shiny black helmet. Through the top corner where it was broken, Liam could see Kylo’s eye, full of rage and anger. Perfect.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s here, Kylo,” Liam announced, and all the eyes in the tunnel turned towards him. “You can have it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And without hesitation, Liam aimed towards Kylo’s eye. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The shot missed, however. Instead, it bounced off the helmet, making Kylo slip on the ice and fall down, while the shot hit Gemma directly. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They all aimed to run in the other direction, but Harry was blocking the way, leaning down over Gemma, who was still alive, to Liam’s relief. Harry didn’t waste any time, carrying her up with both arms and starting to run away, while the rest followed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What the fuck, Liam?” Harry cried, trying to catch his breath as they ran, but he was slowing them down.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Gemma, now fully awake again, was fighting Harry and trying to pull out of his grip. Inside the cave, the roars of the Wampa were not too far away, but there was no red lighting in sight, so the group stopped running. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Harry, he saved us and you’re going to ruin it!” Zayn immediately jumped to defend Liam as Harry placed Gemma on the ground and held her tightly. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Look,” Niall spoke for the first time, his voice sounding terrified and desperate. “We’re close to the entrance, let's just get out </span>
  <em>
    <span>now </span>
  </em>
  <span>and we can discuss Gemma later.” Nial was right. Despite being night in Hoth, there was a dim light coming from the other side of the tunnel, where the entrance of the cave was. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re not taking me hostage!” Gemma exclaimed in anger.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Harry rolled his eyes. “This is not a kidnapping, this is a rescue, for fuck’s sake!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But from the corner of his eye, Liam noticed a shadow leaning closer to them. He didn’t waste a second. He knew his blaster was useless, so he took Louis’ lightsaber from his hand and turned around the moment Kylo Ren’s lightsaber came down on him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Red and green clashed loudly, sending sparks all across the tunnels, and lighting up Kylo Ren’s face. He had taken his helmet off, and Liam saw his pale face covered in sweat and blood. His eyes were dark and hollow.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kylo raised his lightsaber towards Liam again, and Liam somehow blocked it. The weapon felt heavy in his hand, and dangerously powerful.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Run!” Liam cried to his friends, but as soon as Harry let go of Gemma to run, she jumped right on Liam’s back, choking him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam fought with the both of them, quickly tossing Gemma to the side, but Kylo Ren was stronger, angrier, and more powerful. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam could hear Louis calling his name, but the roars of the beast were louder. Way too loud, in fact. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The moment Kylo raised his lightsaber once more, the giant paw of the monster slashed him from the back. The armed man fell down, crying in raw pain. Before Liam could move, the Wampa was already attacking him. He jumped back, and the claw of the monster slightly touched his face, but it was enough to cut his cheek open. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Liam ran as fast as he could, propelled  by the adrenaline coursing through his body. He could see blood covering him all over, dripping intensely. His eyesight became red too. In the distance, he heard Louis voice more clearly, calling his name, over and over again. He felt a pair of hands holding him, and the sound of an engine turning on.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And then, the red turned to black. And there was nothing more. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
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